She is Stronger Than You'll Ever Be
by Cow-Lover2214
Summary: Lucy gets kicked out of Team Natsu, and decides to leave the guild, for she likes herself the way she is, despite what they thought about her being weak. Leaving with her now good friend Gajeel, she decides to start anew. Problem? There's a mystery man, possibly monster, who has fallen in love with her over the years, and wants her. But a certain dragon slayer wont let that happen.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

"Look at her, even with that sorrowful expression she's still stunning," a deep, enthusiastic male voice commented, his tongue running over his sickening smile. The shadows around fell over his body like shield, making him unnoticeable to the naked eye. The only light came from an orb that sat on the table. A image was in the orb, it showed a beautiful blonde girl sitting at the bar in a guild, while she stared out longingly at the people around her.

In particular, she stared at a joyful table, with all of the occupants staring starry eyed at a white haired girl as she told them a story that was most likely a tall tale. The blonde twisted her head away from the scene as if it had burnt her, and forced a smile on her face.

But the pain still evident in her eyes.

"Don't worry, my love, the pain will go away in time. Just wait and I'll save you soon." The dark figure cooed with his strangely disturbing velvety voice.

"Bunny girl," a spiky black haired man greeted the blonde in the image as he approached her, his signature smirk spread across his face.

The dark figure clenched his fist, making his knuckles turn a milky white while he slammed his hands onto the table in fury. The orb jumped slightly as the loud bang filled the empty, dark room.

The appearance of the boy caused the blonde girl to glance at a petite blue-haired girl, who was watching the two, trying to hide her irritation at the duo. It was obvious that resentment was what she felt for the blonde girl, especially when the hatred in her eyes increased ten folds when the blonde was next to the black haired man.

"At least she's trying to hide it," the blonde muttered bitterly but also regretfully under her breath, before sighed quietly to herself.

"You know, you sound creepy when you talk to yourself like that," the black haired boy teased with a large grin, a humorous glint shining in his ruby red eyes. Though after he watched his blonde friend merely flash him a fake, strained smile in response he knew something was up. "What's bothering you Bunny," he asked seriously, genuine concern showing on his features as he stared the girl down.

When the blonde realized he heard her murmur to herself she twisted her body towards him, a deep flush spreading across her fair skinned cheeks. "N-nothing," she claimed falsely, waving her hands as if to shoo away his worries. This caused the man to huff, rolling his eyes; he could clearly see something was bothering her.

Even in the dark room you could almost feel the heat and anger belonging to the glare the figure was giving to the black haired boy in the image of the orb. It only intensified when he saw the look the man was giving her; it was almost… lovingly.

But to the unidentified figure, it was disgusting. Just watching this black haired man stare at something that he did not deserve a pinch of was putrid to the figure. He wanted to rip the man's red eyes out, wanted the man to suffer for even lightly touching a single blonde hair on her beautiful head. This _man_ did not deserve her, and the figure believed that this blonde haired woman was his, and his only.

"Master, is there a problem," a boy asked, opening the door to the dark room which was soon dimly lit. The boy was about the same age as the blonde being shown in the orb; he had onyx colored eyes, and gray hair with the tips of his hair a sky blue. He stood loyally aside, his eyes filled with respect as he gazed worriedly back at the figure.

The dark figures features shown as well as the light poured in. He was a couple years older than the boy, his hair a light brown with the tips of his hair a bloody red. But it wasn't his hair that was the oddest feature on this man, no; it was the fact that he had intense, memorizing, gold eyes, which flashed red for a second out of anger. "Change of plans, we're speeding up the process," he proclaimed with both determination and loathe dancing in his eyes.

The gray haired boy nodded in understanding as he shut to the door to leave his master in peace.

**To be continued…**

**Revised 8/1/2016**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Not Always Alone**

**3****rd**** POV**

A whole month; an entire thirty days is how long Lisanna's party lasted, but Lucy didn't care, in fact, she understood. The girl had come back from the being supposedly dead, and from what she heard, everybody was heartbroken when she died, especially her brother Elfman, and her sister Mira. But what the blonde celestial mage didn't understand was why in the process did they have to ignore her? All of Fairy Tail knew of her lonely past, and knew just how much she feared loneliness and being separated from those she consider her friends and family. Heck, it was the whole reason why the Phantom Lord battle had occurred. But Lucy tried not to think about it, she wasn't going to complain about feeling a bit lonely for only a month; that was just simply childish.

However, she was confused about her team mate's recent actions. As the days passed, she could feel the bonds they once held sprinkle away, as they were too busy being awe-struck by the white haired take-over mage named Lisanna. And despite wanting to be with her team, Lucy just kept away for the glares Lisanna had sent her way explicitly told her that she was not welcomed. Not only that, but the kind hearted celestial mage felt like the white haired girl needed more time catching up with her old friends.

Though in spite of everything, all of Fairy Tail ignoring her wasn't the strangest thing to occur; what was even stranger, was during that time she kept away, as the party was in full blast, Lucy found herself hanging out with a certain iron dragon slayer more and more.

Gajeel had watched as the blonde ended up quite distanced away from her team mates and her guild mates, and though she tried to hide it, he could see the sadness start to linger in her chocolate colored orbs. Having spent the majority of his life feeling completely along, the black haired man knew the feeling and the look all too well. Noting the look, he felt he still needed to make it up to her for what happened in Phantom Lord, despite Lucy already forgiving him, and hung out with her. At first it had been just to make it up to her, but then he later found he liked her company.

With Levy, it was always about books, or her asking about his past life, which he disliked greatly, but talking with Lucy, he seemed to have more fun. They would talk about missions, and funny things that happened on them. They would sometimes talk about magic, and Gajeel felt strangely pleased at just how interested Lucy was in his magic. She wasn't like most people who assumed since its dragon slaying magic it was a lot like Natsu's so they don't ask, mostly knowing how the Salamander's magic worked. She would ask him a bunch of questions, and always made sure to point out that if he didn't want to answer it, he didn't have to (though he would answer them all anyways). Gajeel also found he could understand Lucy more, he wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he sometimes felt like Levy was using a whole different language because he had troubles figuring out some of the things she would say, and that pissed him off greatly. It made him feel as if he was stupid, which he wasn't.

What only Lucy knew, and the fact by itself pained the blonde, was just how much this was hurting Levy. For Levy, her crush was there for one second, and in the next, he was hanging out with her 'best friend.' At first, Levy tried not to think about it much, thinking his pierced body would run back to her like always, but when he didn't, she felt hurt, and for some strange reason, blamed Lucy for all of it. The blonde would find her blunette friend glaring daggers at her from her seat at the guild, and it broke her heart knowing that it had to be her fault, but despite everything, Lucy couldn't find it in herself to push the man away. Lucy could sense that Gajeel too had abandoning problems, just didn't talk about them much, if not, ever, because knowing Gajeel, he wasn't one to get all mushy about his past and his feelings.

Currently, Lucy sat at the bar in the guild, drinking her signature strawberry smoothie. Mira was the only other person who hadn't ignored Lucy; in light Mira thought of the blonde as a second sister, and to be honest, she was one of the few who knew that Lisanna and Lucy were actually quite different. Glancing down at the blonde beauty, the older white haired girl smiled down at Lucy, her heart clenching when she noticed the small, and fake smile Lucy had flashed back. Mira wasn't ignorant to what had been happening to Fairy Tail, how they were treating the blonde, but that didn't mean she liked it. It was honestly quite strange for even her kind hearted younger brother had been giving Lucy the cold shoulder, something that wasn't like him at all.

Right then, the guild doors opened, revealing a black haired man with his signature piercing covered body. Gajeel's eyes ran over the guild, coming upon the blonde woman he was looking for. He took note of how her attention seemed to be taken by Mira, and grinned mischievously. He walked over to her with feather light feet, which was actually quite the feat considering his bulky body, and went behind her, grabbed her by the hips and whispered a small "boo."

"Ah!" Lucy yelped in shock, jumping lightly out of the dragon slayer's grasp. She turned to find the iron dragon slayer behind her, giving her a large, shit-eating grin. Sighing a breath of relief, she then mock glared at the man who was now chuckling at her. "Gajeel," she said lowly, still pretending to be furious, when in reality, they both saw that she really wasn't. Not with the the side of her lip twitching upwards as she tried to suppress a smile.

"Calm down Bunnygirl, it was only a scare." Gajeel waved off nonchalantly, hiding away his own smile. Rolling her eyes as she continued to play along, the celestial mage lightly slapped his arm. Gajeel ignored the slap on the arm, simply giving her a large grin that became so huge, it looked as if it was about to split his cheeks wide open. It was only then that Lucy's eyes softened at the grin, giving him her own soft, genuine smile in return.

And though he would never admit it, the look caused his heart to skip a beat.

Truthfully, it anyone else slapped him on his arm, he would've taken that as a sign they needed the crap beaten out of them, something he would have easily gave to anyone when he had been at Phantom Lord. But for some reason Gajeel allowed Lucy to touch him like that, not only because he didn't want to harm her unintentionally, but also because he didn't even like the thought of hitting her.

It was strange feeling, like a heavy pit in his stomach formed at the thought of, well, anything hitting his Bunny. The black haired man wasn't sure why he had not wanted to hurt to her, but just figured it was probably because he tortured her in the Phantom Lord battle, and then shoved anything related to it out of his mind.

"So, are you going to go on a mission," the blonde asked, changing the subject as she smiled up at him.

"Maybe, haven't been on one in while. What about you, going a mission soon? You haven't been on one in a month now," Gajeel pointed out as he sat down next to her, nether of the two noticing just how close they were sitting. It was to the point their knees and shoulders touched.

Lucy frowned, "same with you. And well, I was waiting for Team Natsu to finish catching up so we can go on one together, but it seems it might be a while."

The iron dragon slayer shrugged, "just go by yourself, what's the big deal?"

"Well… I've never gone on one by myself. I've always went on one's with either Team Natsu or just Natsu, so truthfully, I'm kind of worried," Lucy stated honestly, a blush rising at her cheeks as she looked down in her drink in embarrassment. She didn't want to seem so weak, especially in front of Gajeel, but it was true, Lucy was scared about going on one on her own, she had never done that before, and was scared about screwing it up.

"Then go on a job with me," Gajeel said simply with a shrug of his shoulders, causing the blonde to jerk out her thoughts and snap her head towards him. Two months ago, if anybody told Lucy that Gajeel would offer to go on a mission with her, she would've laughed at them, but here was he now, simply saying that she could go on a job with him and just shrugs it off.

Though to an outsider it wouldn't seem like much, it was actually in reality a big deal. Gajeel had gotten some reputation as lone wolf, always going out on missions by himself or with Lily. The only other person/group that had went out on mission with him before was Shadow Gear, but even then it had happened only twice.

"Are you sure you want to go on one with me?" She asked skeptically, nibbling her lip in hesitation. Lucy wasn't against the idea, in fact, she was kind of excited and a little bit anxious. It would give her a chance to get a new job experience because with going on jobs with Natsu or Team Natsu, it was always just destruction, and the blonde trying to keep them from ruining the entire city, which was easier said than done.

"Whatever Bunnygirl," Gajeel answered with a small shrug, looking down at the bar counter to find Mira had placed a plate of iron in front of him. The iron dragon slayer smirked hungrily and started to chomp on the metal. He remembered at first the blonde celestial mage would cringe at the sound of him eating the iron, but she gotten used to it rather quickly, and didn't seem to mind all that much anymore.

"Okay! Let's go pick out a job later then," Lucy cheered with a brilliant smile, obviously happy that her new friend wasn't against the idea of going out on a job with her. Catching sight of her beaming happiness, Gajeel fought away a blush. Looking away from her face he focused on the iron instead in hopes the burning feeling go away, meanwhile also ignoring how his heart sped up. He wasn't sure why he was reacting this way, but he felt his inner dragon growl with pleasure at how excited Lucy had gotten over just going on a job with him.

"You two going on a job," Mira asked, seemingly popping out of nowhere.

"Oh Mira, yeah we are," Lucy said answered with a tiny smile ,though she instantly realized just how much that was a bad idea with she saw hearts pop into her friends eyes, obviously daydreaming about the 'outcomes' that could come after this.

"Oh I can already see it now, the two of you, together, holding hands, acting lovey dovey! Then there will come the children, oh black haired blue eyed babies, and blonde haired red eyed babies!" Mira squealed, already picturing Gajeel's and Lucy's so-called future children running around.

The blonde sighed heavily, battling away her own blush, while Gajeel stiffened uncomfortably, now remembering why he usually beat the crap out of people who interrupted him while he was eating. "Oh Mira, we're not like that, its just a mission," Lucy stated simply, causing the white haired woman before them to pout in feigned sadness, but there was still a bit of hope in her eyes for the two.

It was only then that the celestial mage chanced a glance at Levy, finding herself suddenly down when she noticed the look on her ex-friend's face. The bluenette was glaring daggers at her with her jaw grounded together in clear fury, having overheard everything. She knew for sure that Levy was angry at the mention of her friend and her crush being together, when the bluenette felt that it was only herself that deserved the black haired man.

"Just like Bunny said, it's not like that," Gajeel said gruffly, biting off a piece of iron with more force than necessary. For some reason that statement didn't feel… right.

The older girl walked away, a bit down because she was hoping that the two most misjudged people she had ever met would just get together already; they fit so perfectly together in her mind. It was just like fairy tale; a lonely, saddened girl, being saved and loved by a strong man who comes in, whisks her off of her feet, and protects her with all he's got. However, for now Mira decided to keep quite content with her daydreams of a certain iron dragon slayer and celestial mage together.

The duo then just continued to drink and eat in a comfortable silence, which was another thing both Gajeel and Lucy liked about each other's company.

When Gajeel was with Levy, it was never quiet, and whenever there was a silent moment between them, Levy would start to squirm. She would was always become well aware of his presence, and didn't feel like the silent moment's between them.

Lucy's team, on the other hand, was always a loud, destructive group, so being able to sit in a silence with Gajeel, made her feel relaxed, because with them, something always happened, and a fight would break out. The blonde couldn't remember once of sitting with Team Natsu in silence.

Once Lucy finished her smoothie, she told Gajeel to meet her by the job request board for he was almost done eating his iron. She was too excited about the prospect of all of this.

"Hmm," the celestial mage hummed, grabbing onto a job request that needed a mage(s) to transport, rare, and extremely expensive necklaces to another town, and it seemed the only way to get to that town was to travel through a forest that was known to be filled with thieves.

"Find one Bunny," Gajeel asked coming up behind the blonde, almost scaring her again. He had this strange ability to sneak up on her, one of which he was well aware of.

"Yeah here," she said, handing him the paper. It read:

**Need Help!**

**Where: Jukina**

**Description: I need to transport four necklaces that hold extremely expensive and rare jewels in them to Crocus. The only way to get there is to travel through a forest infested with thieves. Need strong mage(s), who are willing to fight, and are reliable and trustworthy. **

**Pay: 2,800,000 Jewels**

"Sounds good Bunnygirl," the black haired man said after looking over the request. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she the sight of an approving grin on his face.

She was glad he liked it, having purposely picked a job request that involved fighting. She knew it was right up Gajeel's alley, and plus she needed a challenge; when going out on jobs it was always the rest of Team Natsu doing the hard fighting, or just sometimes Natsu. For some reason they never allowed the blonde to do anything.

Lucy snatched the paper out of Gajeel's hands, excitedly running over to Mira to have her approve it. The black haired male just watched where he stood as the blonde jumped up and down excited like a bunny, and smirked to himself. He figured she would be excited; after all, it had been a whole month since she had been on a job, and she must be happy about not having to go on one alone. _Mine… _his inner dragon growled possessively, followed by a pleased purr when Gajeel thought about the possibility of Lucy being excited about the mission just because he would be going on it with her.

What confused the pierced man, was why his inner dragon would be so pleased at such a thought?

**To be continued…**

**Revised 6/28/2016**

_A/N: So, we're already seeing attraction Gajeel has towards Lucy (or at least, his inner dragon). Is this better? I know it's a lot different from my original first chapter… Another important question: should I delete my other original chapters so this story is easier to follow? THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR THE SUGGESTIONS AND THE SUPPORT! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY WITH THIS CHAPTER! _


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: I Owe You?**

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy sighed, sinking her bare, creamy colored body into the steaming water.

The blonde loved baths, they were always relaxing, and soothing; she felt like the water coaxed her and protected her in a weird way. And as she relaxed her mind then thought back to the job she and Gajeel were going to go on. They decided to leave for it early tomorrow, exactly at seven sharp, and Lucy was trying to prepare herself mentally for it. It would be the first time she would be going on a job with just the iron dragon slayer instead of Natsu or the team. She didn't want to screw up in fear that Gajeel might think lowly of her afterwards, which for some reason, caused a pit to form in Lucy's stomach.

She didn't want him to protect her, or at least believe that she couldn't protect herself; Natsu had done it so many times that she had gotten used to it and eventually stopped whining about how she was always the one saved instead of doing the saving, despite the fact that it really bothered her that Natsu never allowed her a single chance to prove herself. But for some strange reason, she felt a wave a fear wash over her like tsunami thinking about Gajeel saving her; for some reason she didn't want him to think of her as a weak girl. _He might not be my friend any longer of he thinks I'm weak,_ Lucy's dark thoughts stated, feeling a wave of unsettlement rub on her.

Lucy shook her thoughts away, sliding her body down so that her hair got wet, then ran her hands through her now wet, dark blonde locks. "Ahh, so relaxing," she sighed comfortably to herself, ignoring the dark corners of her mind that were spouting out worry after worry about the mission. She curled her toes, giggling very softly when she felt the water squished in between the little studs. The celestial mage felt weightless when she was on the tub, and quite liked the feeling of it.

Suddenly, a burst of golden light appeared, and Lucy knew in that second, the calm atmosphere she had, was ruined. "Hello my princess," Loke said smoothly, grabbing Lucy's damp hand that rested on the ridge of the tub and pressing a kiss to it, as if he was completely obliovious to the fact that the celestial mage was in birthday suit.

"Loke, get out of the bathroom now!" Lucy screeched in rage, and if it was any other time, she would Lucy-kicked the hell out of him. However she knew for sure she would end up flashing him something she didn't want him to _ever _see, so instead, she screamed with the fury (and slight embarrassment), letting her demonic aura take place.

The lion spirit yelped and rushed out of the bathroom, not wanting to risk the wrath of the demon hidden inside the girl. The blonde sighed heavily as the door slammed shut, standing up in the slick tub, hearing the sound of the water drip from her skin and her hair. After getting out of the pearly white time, she grabbed a towel and dried her skin and her hair, muttering curses under she breath, all of which were directed towards the man in the other room. She then dressed herself up in the pajamas left out for herself in the bathroom.

_I don't know why he finds it necessary to disturb my moments of peace. It's getting to the point that I'm starting to believe it's a hobby of his,_ her thoughts grumbled. 

"What is it Loke, didn't you see I was taking a bath," Lucy asked impatiently, walking towards him with her arms crossed over her chest in a rather no nonsense kind of way.

"Yes, I did. Although I wished my _kind_ and _generous_ princess would have showed me more," he pouted with amusement dancing in his eyes.

And just like that it was the last straw for Lucy's already steaming anger.

"Lucy kick," the blonde girl yelled, slamming her powerful foot into Loke's stomach, causing the playboy to slam back into the wall behind him. He groaned in pain and slowly got up, flinching the entire way; he hadn't been Lucy Kicked in a while, so he forgot just how much those damn kicks hurt.

"Okay okay, the real reason why I came is because I was worried about you princess. You're going on mission with that _Gajeel_, and I want to make sure if we can trust him or not," Loke nearly growled after he recovered, and from the intense gleam in his eyes, Lucy could see he still held some resentment towards the black haired man.

The lion spirit hated thinking about just how close the iron dragon slayer has gotten to his lovely blonde princess, and Loke was sure neither of them noticed just how close the two have gotten over the tiny time frame of just one month. But it wasn't just that, Loke had never particularly liked Gajeel, so this wasn't particularly a new thing. The playboy hadn't forgiven the other man for what he did to his sweet blonde during the Phantom Lord battle; and even though Loke himself hadn't exactly been nice to Lucy either during the that time (for he was still wary of her since she was a celestial mage), he still didn't believe anyone deserved what Gajeel had done to her.

No, Loke didn't trust him at all. Not even the fact that Gajeel was one out of the few members of Fairy Tail who were still nice to Lucy could persuade him to trust the man.

"Loke, I'll be fine, I'm not completely useless." Lucy sighed, though she wouldn't admit it, but she actually felt touched just how much her spirit cared for her. "Besides, I'm sure nothing bad will happen… I know how you feel about him, but he's changed, and I've forgiven him; he won't do anything bad to me."

"I know," Loke sighed, running a hand to through his spiky locks. He then stated honestly, "and I believe you can do this job just fine… I just don't like the idea of you going with _him_."

"Gajeel's a good guy, and he's sincerely changed since the Phantom Lord incident… If you would just give him a chance you would see it for yourself," Lucy emphasized. Though she trusted Loke's judgment, she couldn't help but feel the need to defend her new friend against one of her most oldest and loyalist comrade.

Staring deeply into her eyes, Loke vanished away without another word, obviously not sure of what to say. And really, what else was there to say? He knew she would just keep defending the dragon slayer no matter what he said, in fact he knew she would be doing the same thing for Loke himself if someone were to question the spirit's intentions.

Though that didn't mean he like the idea of her being alone with Gajeel any more than he did a second ago.

The blonde, finding nothing else to do and was slightly tired form everything that happened today, packed some of her clothes in a small bag. Despite being able to have her bag stored in the celestial world, she had a feeling it would just be better to pack light for this trip in case she would have to carry the bag when traveling. Whilst doing that, Lucy then found herself wondering what it was going to be like traveling with Gajeel, and how he behaved during a job request in general.

**Gajeel POV**

"So, you going on a job with Lucy," Lily asked casually from where he laid. He wasn't there when Bunnygirl and I decided on going on this job. He instead was at a table with the other exceeds.

"Yeah, going to some place called Jukina; have to transport these expensive necklaces," I explained gruffly, stuffing a couple of shirts in my bag. I was sure how long it would take us to finish this job, but my guess was probably about a week to about possibly two weeks. Even though I mentioned going on the mission nonchalantly, what Bunny doesn't know was that I suggested going on this job because I felt like the girl needed to get away from Fairy Tail, which made both my inner dragon and I growl inwardly in frustration.

I admit, I usually I don't give a crap about other people or what they feel, so doing this for Bunny, made me wonder what the hell was wrong with me; it wasn't like I couldn't feel, it was just that these emotions I've been feeling recently, were the kind that I made jokes about, and couldn't give a rat's ass about. I guessed I must've gone a little soft for Bunnygirl during the time we have spent together, which sort of pissed me off a little bit because I wasn't suppose to get soft. Heck, I'm an _Iron Dragon Slayer_, not the Fluffy Animal Helper. And yet, at the same time I wasn't angry, just… accepting.

But the end result was that I wasn't that much pissed off at Bunny. She deserved way better than what she has been getting from Team Flameprick, and she needed time away from them and with someone that wasn't going to treat her like she was invisible. It really ticked me off at how Fairy Tail was now treating their used to be beloved celestial mage, who they use to gush about nearly all the fucking. And I felt some of my anger directing itself to Levy because the blue haired bitch was supposed to be Bunny's best friend, and the girl has been acting dry ice cold towards her. Like I said earlier, I don't really give a crap about people most of the time, but it had gotten to the point that I dropped the nickname that I once called Levy. I mean I don't know a lot about friendship's, but what I do know you don't pretend your _friend_ is invisible, or glare at them form afar.

"So Lily, you coming?" I asked normally, ripping myself from my thoughts before I go too angry. However some anger still resided and I found myself shoving my items in my bag with more power than necessary.

"I think I'll sit this one out," Lily said calmly, his curious eyes calculating my every move, which I ignored. That exceed was damn perceptive, and I didn't want him to start getting any funny ideas like the demon woman did earlier. Remembering that babies comment, made the back of my throat burn remembering just how much it hurt when I chocked on that iron, and for some reason, the thought of it made me heart start to speed up rapidly, almost as if it was bomb about to explode in chest. "So, I noticed you've been hanging out with Lucy a lot," Lily stated while he still continued to eye me, making my jaw lock; great, now he's already got funny ideas.

"Bunnygirl's been lonely because of her asshole team and the stupid guild; I owe it to her," I defended, once again ignoring the fact that even I didn't believe myself. After a couple moments I then glanced cautiously out of the corner of my eye, only to see my exceeds eyes narrow in suspicion. I nearly wanted to groan, in exasperation, but instead I continued packing, disregarding the suspicion Lily obviously had for the rest of the night.

**To be continued…**

**Revised 8/2/2016**

_A/N: I was planning on making my chapters a little bit longer, but didn't in this one. __**If you've noticed, I've deleted all of my before chapters so it's easier to follow the rewrite**__. I hope you like this chapter, and I hope Gajeel isn't OOC in the slightest; I tried my hardest to capture him in as a character._

_To Jessica Phantomhive: Thank you, I'm glad you are happy with the update! _

_To The Writer of The FanFiction: Yeah, well Gajeel can be dense, but not Natsu dense, that's way too dense._


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Unexplained Feelings Are Troublesome**

**3****rd**** POV**

Currently, Gajeel waited at the train station for a certain blonde celestial mage, and for some reason, his mind decided to torture him during the long, silence. His thoughts piled through, wondering why the demon girl and his partner in crime seemed to be getting funny ideas.

Sure he guessed that it could look like he and Lucy were together; the lonely girl finding comfort she wants with having sexual relations with a man who has stayed by her side. But Lucy was not like that, everybody who had eyes could see that; she was not someone who would use another for pleasure only because they were lonely. No, she was so much more; beautiful, but kind, thoughtful-

Gajeel grumbled angrily at himself as he jerked away from where his thoughts had been trailing to. He didn't care about what they thought, maybe a little with Lily, but nobody else.

_And Lucy… _his inner dragon stated, but merely shook that thought away, ignoring his inner dragon like he had been lately.

The black haired man then thought back to when he had been a member of Phantom Lord; at the time he hadn't cared of what she thought of him (though really, he hadn't cared about what anyone thought of him). And even after when he joined the guild he hadn't cared less for in his eyes she was just some ditzy blonde he could only see using as a fling. But after Gajeel had spent time with her, while the guild treated Lucy as if she was worth nothing more than an annoying piece of gum stuck to their shoe, he found himself flabbergasted with what he found.

This celestial mage was so different, so much more complex than he had originally thought, and quickly after he started talking to her, Gajeel realized just how much he cared about what she thought of him. In the end he soon became conflicted between angry and worry; worry that she thought poorly of him despite the kind, sincere smiles she always flashed him, and angry that a guild that was known for treating their members like family, actually treated such an amazing person like shit.

Even thinking about it now caused the iron dragon slayer to clench his fists with barely concealed fury.

He then ripped away from his torturous thoughts, and instead watched as people walked by, a few glancing at him in fear. He rolled his eyes with a huff, his gaze completely uncaring as he continued to wait; thankfully it wasn't for too long.

"Good morning Gajeel!" a cheery voice called, and the said found himself turning to look at a familiar blonde, carrying a snowman-looking spirit in her arms. She was smiling so brightly, her eyes shut tightly as she strolled up to him. The black haired man felt a ghost of a smile hover over his lips, but he quickly pushed it away, giving her his signature grin.

Both of them were completely oblivious to the astounded looks they were receiving, many wondering how such a small, cute looking girl could ever be around a brute like him. Though it wasn't like either of them cared anyways.

"Bunnygirl, I was starting to think you weren't gonna' make it in time," Gajeel scolded teasingly, walking over to her and handing Lucy her ticket. And even though he remained playful, he will admit, he hated whenever Levy's team was late. Yet, for some reason he found himself indifferent to her tardiness, something he readily ignored like always.

"Sorry, my alarm clock didn't go off," Lucy admitted bashfully as she rubbed the back of her fair skinned neck sheepishly, "and thank you for buying my ticket."

Gajeel simply shrugged it off in return, stating that it was no big deal while the duo boarded the train, the blonde staying at the pierced man's heels the whole time.

She appeared calm, collected, like she usually always does, but truthfully, her stomach was doing summersaults at the thought of their mission. Even though she's nervous about screwing up with Gajeel around, she was mostly nervous about how the whole thing was going to play out. From the sounds of it, the necklaces were of high importance, and she would hate to lose them on accident while completing the mission, but her bad thoughts went away for she had faith in both herself and Gajeel that they could complete this mission together.

_And I'm sure Gajeel wouldn't always himself to get dubbed by a couple of bandits, _she thought with a rather fond smile, hugging Plue closer to her bountiful chest.

Usually when she went on a job with Natsu or her team, it was always involved fighting, and only fighting. So the thought of the job having to transport a valuable piece being more important than fighting off something, or protecting a town, shook the blonde beauty with nerves. But like mentioned before, she had faith in her and Gajeel, and she would hope to find out that the duo made a great team together.

Meanwhile, as her thoughts ran wild like a herd of gazelles, she walked by men of nearly all ages and of all appearances, who leered at her appreciatively. Many took a long time to rip their gazes from either her behind or her breasts, even when some had a significant other sitting right next to them.

Gajeel, on the other hand, had noticed. He immediately snapped his head over at them, growling at them with a malicious intent. The second he did they scurried away, or instantly look away, put off by his scary appearance mixed in with his obvious fury.

"Why the hell didn't you Bunny Kick them?" Gajeel practically snarled, suddenly feeling this unknown urge to release hell upon those men who dared to stare at Bunny.

"Sorry Gajeel, what was that," Lucy asked softly as she quickly tore from her haze, raising a question brow his way. The black haired man nearly sighed at her obliviousness.

"I've been trying to ask you if this was an okay spot, but it seems like you got yer head in the clouds." He lied steadily, finding no reason to actually tell her the truth considering the situation had already been taken care of.

"S-sorry," Lucy apologized quickly, a blush rising at her cheeks as she suddenly turned bashful.

Gajeel snorted; there wasn't much to apologize for, especially since he didn't really ask her. The blonde then realized that she hadn't answered his question, secretly touched that he would consider where she wanted to sit; knowing Gajeel did what he did and usually didn't give a flying crap about most people.

"This spot is fine," she answered back.

The duo sat down, putting their bags away and sat right next to each other, their bodies only a centimeter apart, which was rather close for a couple of people who are _only_ friends. That fact made Gajeel think about to when he went on jobs with Levy and her team. He knew that Levy would always try to sit next to him for some strange reason (one he never really cared about), but Jet would always insist she sat next to him. With a defeated look, Levy would comply and always ended up sitting next to Jet, while Gajeel ended up sitting with Droy.

All of the sudden, a vision caught his blood red eyes, and a vicious scowl crossed his lips. While he had been submerged in his own thoughts, some douche thought that it would be fine to make his way towards Lucy, probably completely awe-struck by her amazing, busty body followed by her pretty face. He obviously hadn't seen the show Gajeel had put on only a minute ago, or else, he wouldn't have dared come near them.

Unless of course, he didn't value his life, for right now, Gajeel was considering how much trouble he would get in for strangling this _man_ to death.

"Hello there, sweetie, may I sit here," the unidentified man asked with a charming smile, motioning to the seats across the two, his eyes brightening as he gazed at the blonde beauty.

"Oh, sure, we don't mind," Lucy answered politely, followed by a smile of her own.

Gajeel simply grunted at the two, eying the man suspiciously before he threw his crossed arms behind his head and relaxed somewhat. He still listened tensely without seeming suspicious, even closing his eyes as he waited for the unknown man to slip up so the iron dragon slayer could have an excuse for beating the man into oblivion.

"I haven't seen you around Jukina before, are you two visiting there," the man asked rather curiously.

"Yes, in fact, we are visiting," the blonde answered brightly in return, right as a great idea occurred to her. "I've heard some interesting things about the patch of woods that separate Crocus and Jukina, and well, this guy" Lucy said, pointing over to Gajeel, "and I were planning on camping out in those woods, and possibly taking a long hike from Jukina to Crocus. But we wanted to know if the rumors about the bandits were true or not. If there is, is there a safer route we can take instead?" She asked as she faked concern, even though she had qualms about lying to this man who clearly had been kind to them so far. But if the man told the duo where the safest route would be, if it even existed, then they might be able to do the job easier and faster. This also lessened the chance for the necklaces to be stolen, so in reality, it would be a win win.

"Ah, great question. There actually is no safest route, most of the bandits who live there move around a lot. If they were to stay in one place, they would've already been caught. Sorry I couldn't be more of help, I guess the only advice I can give you is after you've stayed enough in Jukina, and want to go to Crocus, jump back on this train, ride back, and then take another train to Crocus, because that is the only way you'll be able to get there," he told Lucy honestly. Lucy mentally sighed, but thanked the man for his help.

"So, are you two like a couple," the man asked, smiling at the two, though neither noticed how he grimaced slightly as if such a thought repulsed him. However Gajeel's eyes snapped open at that comment, and he managed to catch the glint in the man's eyes.

It didn't rest well with him.

"Oh no, we're not like that at all," Lucy said, shaking her hands as if she was shaking away his thoughts. The unknown man then grinned with a little more brightness then before, glad that the two weren't together, but his earlier happiness dimmed when he caught sight of the tiny bit of pink smeared across her cheeks. Chancing a quick glance Gajeel's way, he then turned his sights back onto the celestial mage, checking out her body while he stared at the black haired man from the corner of his eyes.

Gajeel's throat was vibrating, as if he was about to growl. It was clear now that there was some feelings here.

No, the unidentified man did not like this out all.

"Hmm, I thought you were… oh and I didn't seem to have caught your name," the man continued as he currently ignored the furious man across from him.

"Oh, it's Lucy."

"Nice to meet you Lucy, I'm Daniel," he answered flashing his charming smile once more, which in return, caused Lucy's blush to deepen a little more. Gajeel huffed at the scene, his eyes throwing daggers to man now known as Daniel.

_This is going to be a long ride, and if that guy keeps talking to Bunnygirl, I'm going to smash his face in, _Gajeel thought to himself as he lightly bit onto his fist, trying to keep in all the rage he currently felt.

**To be continued…**

**Revised 8/26/2016**

_A/N: So, I'm trying to catch this story up a bit now that I have deleted all my before chapters, oh and I don't own Fairy Tail, if I did, Gajeel and Lucy would've been together, not a fan of Gajeel and Levy at all to tell you the truth. _

_To mariawalker112__: Thank you, I hope you enjoy this chapter! _

_To All-american rejects__: I hope you enjoy this chapter, and it brings me happiness knowing that you are excited :D_


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: You Can Wonder**

**Levy POV**

"This mission will be awesome, don't you think so Levy," Jet asked excitedly, sending a large smile my way.

Currently, I was at the train station with Jet and Droy, who was obvious bustling with excitement like usual. Shadow Gear had decided to take a mission today, and I agreed hesitantly, for I had a lingeringly fear that if I left, my ex-friend and my amazing, strong, handsome crush would get together.

But then I would remind myself of the things Jet and Droy repeat to me every day, and I my confidence would surge. I convinced myself that I still had a big chance at this; for us.

Deep down, I would sometimes find myself daydreaming about Gajeel telling me all of those things too, though in more of his gruff manner in not in the childish manner Jet and Droy always did.

Of course my used-to-be best friend had to shake her breasts at my crush, wanting to make him like her, and now the poor guy was hooked on her. I was so mad at Lucy, she just had to have all the guys eyes on her, like she doesn't have them curled around her most of the time, and of course she couldn't even let me have Gajeel.

And what made it worse, was the fact that I noticed those two have gotten closer in the past month than we have over the past _years_ of being friends. Gajeel never joked with me, there was never a smile in his eyes when he looked my way, and he never teased me like he did with Lucy, playfully scaring her whenever he got the chance. And I doubted he would ever be fine with me giving him a playful hit like Lucy always does, not like I would ever hit him, but it still hurt to know he had never done these types of things. These were the things you would commonly see with people who were in relationships, simply making me even more furious that she just had to take him away from me.

"Levy, you okay," Jet asks hesitantly, pulling me from my pain filled thoughts.

As much as I wanted Gajeel, and no matter how much I would fight to get him back, in the end he always ran to her. But I decided to store my thoughts away for now, knowing that it will only result in Jet and Droy bugging me about it for the remainder of the trip.

"I'm fine," I grinned in return. Though I can feel Droy glancing my way, inspecting me, and I just give him a brilliant smile, knowing it would vapor any thoughts he had away. He instantly smiles in return, his cheeks lighting up in a hint of a blush.

"If you're sure," he replies softly, suddenly sheepish.

"Woah, I never expected that," Jet practically exclaims, looking out at something in the distance.

I shook my head around, looking for what he was talking about, and when my eyes came upon it, I felt a frown pull at my lips, my eyes narrowing into a glare.

There was Gajeel, my crush, and then there was Lucy boarding the train together and from the looks of it, the iron dragon slayer was growling at all the guys who dared to look her way.

As cheesy as it sounded, my heart stuttered and then it shattered, and I felt couldn't dare to look at them any longer as I ripped my eyes away from the scene. I stared down at my toes instead, suddenly finding them more interesting than anything else around me. _Gajeel was never protective of me, and if he was and I just didn't notice; it was never like that. He looks like he'll murder anybody who dares to even think about making a move on her,_ I thought to myself solemnly, mostly dreary from seeing that, but practically furious thinking about how _that_ could've been _mine_.

I shook my head, trying to pretend I never saw anything and turned to Jet. "Yeah, neither did I… Anyways, you guys ready to head out," I asked as I immediately moved away from the subject. Jet and Droy answered both with a yes, not suspecting anything as we went onto our train.

I could already feel that this mission was not going to be a pleasant one.

**Mira POV**

I stood from my place at the bar, smiling softly to myself as I recalled my favorite couple out of all of Fairy Tail; Gajeel and Lucy. I quite enjoyed gazing at them from a distance every day, and I was slightly saddened to know that I wouldn't be able to inwardly gush at their adorableness since they were away on a mission. I really liked watching something slowly brew between the two.

Gajeel always looked so in place whenever he was next to Lucy, and especially when it was only them together. The celestial mage also seemed especially happy to be with him as well; sending him small, genuine, and grateful smiles. At first I suspected Lucy's happiness with Gajeel had a lot to do with the fact that the guild, even her own team, were bluntly ignoring her, and Gajeel was the only person giving her special attention (even though Master and I aren't ignoring her either, we both have been very busy, and haven't gotten much time with the blonde beauty). However I have come to realize that Lucy's joy with Gajeel is because the two have sincerely became great, dare I say, best friends.

I'm glad the two have been getting along; however I can't help but feel a little furious with the guild for ignoring the blonde in favor for Lisanna. Despite loving that my sister was back home, I had noticed these types of things, and felt for Lucy, who I had become to think of as a sister.

When the iron dragon slayer first joined our loud, party-filled guild, I wasn't sure what to think of him, but I still treated him kindly like I would do for any other new members. And I remembered that Gajeel and Levy seemed to hang out a lot; he would always be sitting at the table with her, chomping on his iron, while she would either be talking to him, or reading one of her books.

That was when I first started to ship them; blue haired, red eyed babies, black haired, brown eyed babies. I think at the time, all I wanted was a new couple to ship in hopes we would have some young ones running around here soon, but in due time, I noticed small things about the two, and it seemed as if they weren't as close as the guild had perceived them to be. I think another reason why I shipped them so much at first was because Levy was the first person (and the only person for a while) that Gajeel didn't seem to treat too badly; though it wasn't till later that I noticed he was more _annoyed_ with her than anything.

It's understandable; being with someone as smart as Levy, who also likes to flaunt their smarts can make a person feel slightly inferior. Really, the blonde was the only person who seemed to keep up with Levy when it came to that stuff, but even then I knew Lucy got tired of it quickly.

On the other hand, when I first saw Lucy and Gajeel talking, I wasn't sure what universe I was in. I couldn't remember once of the two talking to each other, other than when he tortured her in the Phantom Lord battle. And then when he joined Fairy Tail, I believe he was so ashamed at what he had done to her, that he didn't want to talk to the celestial mage, and instead, apologized to Levy because it was easier for him to deal with.

He hadn't hurt Levy and the rest of Shadow Gear nearly as much as he did to Lucy.

And yet, I would catch him sending glances towards Lucy every so often, before they started hanging out; before Lisanna came back.

"Hey Mira," Lisanna said, coming up to me as she broke me from my past memores. I smiled sweetly at her; her personality was great, but no matter what others said, I couldn't believe them when they would say Lucy is like Lisanna; to me they were as different as night and day.

"Hi Lisa-nee, what's up," I asked, drying the glass I was holding.

"Oh nothing really… Oh wait, yeah! Team Natsu are planning on kicking out Lucy so that I could join their team, isn't that exciting," Lisanna exclaimed enthusiastically, a large, almost foxy smile pulling at her lips. I felt a frown start to tug at my heart strings, but I kept on the cheery aura, trying to not let my dear younger sister see how displeased at what I was hearing.

"Oh, but what about Lucy? It isn't nice for her team to kick her out," I stated.

"But Mira-nee! We all promised each other when we were younger we would make a team together, and besides, aren't you happy for me," she asked, frowning, with a dejected expression. I shook my hands quickly, trying to usher away the saddened look over taking my sister's features.

"Of course not… but Lisanna, sometimes we have to consider others feelings as well. I hope you remember that when you make your final decision."

"They said she would be fine with it and that she would understand, and if she didn't that would be just selfish. We haven't seen each other in years, and Lucy's only been at the guild, like what, a year, two years at the most? And we _promised_ each other when we were children that we would create a team together; now is the best time than any. Besides, I've already made my final decision."

This time I did frown, my heart filling with equal amounts of fury, and disappointment; I knew my celestial friend would be heart stricken if she were to be kicked out of Team Natsu. After all, she had close ties with all of them, especially Natsu; he had saved her too many times to count, and has cared for her as well. He was also the person that brought her joyful, kind, forgiving spirit to the guild, and I would hate to have my second sister hurt.

No, I did not this at all, in fact, I absolutely loathed this.

**To be continued…**

**Revised 10/6/2016**

_A/N: Small chapter, I know, I just wanted to show you all of other people's thoughts about Gajeel and Lucy. Also, I'm sorry if you like Levy, and if you find her a little mean, but to tell you, in this FanFic, she will not be a mean person during; if you don't understand you'll find out way, way later. _

_To All-american rejects__: Yeah, sorry, I know you probably wanted more of Gajeel and Lucy, but they'll show up in next chapter… promise!_

_To mariawalker112__: Thank you so much! Your review made my day (was kind of having a bad day that day), and yeah, haters are actually kind of good (sometimes they're not, especially when you are having a bad day) because it just means that they like your story, they just think it needs some improvement, and that actually helps because it makes you write better and try to live up to their expectations. But I'm glad I made you really happy:D _


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Two People in Peace… Oh And One Other **

**3****rd**** POV**

The rest of the train ride had been deadly silent, and for once, it was uncomfortable for the duo since they had to share their space with another person.

Gajeel remained indifferent the whole time (though inwardly he wished to beat the other man to a bloody pulp), resting while he tried to ignore the sickness swirling in his stomach. The blonde on the other hand just gazed out the window with a faraway expression; taking peace and comfort from the view shown in front of her.

Daniel, their guest, on the other hand was not acting as peaceful as the other two in the room. He watched Lucy intensely the entire time, and many times he tried to strike up a conversation with the beauty. And while Lucy complied with an easy smile, not noticing how Daniel seemed to be leering with eyes overflowing with lust and something else that was indescribable, Gajeel sneered at the man in annoyance, and would purposely break up their conversation by getting Lucy off topic.

It always worked, and just to spite the other man, Gajeel would smirk at him smugly, enjoying the way Daniel glared daggers back. If looks could kill the dragon slayer would already be six feet under and cold as the ground he laid in. However despite their obvious loathing to one another, neither started a fight they dearly wish they could, for both of them did not want to upset the pretty celestial mage with them, and beating each other to the point that all there would be left is blood and some bones would not exactly please the poor girl.

Though Gajeel couldn't help but feel that there was something off with the guy. Even his inner dragon was growling furiously at Daniel. There was just something that made Gajeel on edge; made the dark haired man feel as if he should be watching Lucy a little more closely. He didn't like it; neither did his inner dragon.

But before the pierced man could relish in the imagined images of Daniels corpse after he would be through with him, Gajeel felt a dainty hand rest against his forearm, pulling him away from his thoughts as he turned to the blonde by his side. "Are you feeling sick from the motion," she asked worriedly, her eyebrows furrowing a bit as she ran her chocolate colored orbs over his body.

The black haired man just snorted in return. "Nah, I'm fine Bunnygirl," he stated confidently, but he knew he wasn't fooling her; he could practically feel his face turning green but he didn't want to worry his partner. However, is seemed lady luck was not on his side today, for right then the train tousled, and instantly Gajeel slumped against his seat, letting out a light groan.

Lucy gave him a kind smile, after giggling a little bit at his "tough guy" attitude, and in response, the iron dragon slayer half heartedly glared back. Feeling confidence enter her veins, the blonde reached up and grabbed his head, pulling it down to her lap as she ran her fingers through his long, silky, black locks.

The iron dragon slayer immediately opened his mouth to object, but then stopped when he saw the anger simmering inside the other male in the room, his eyes burning with jealousy as he stared at the two mages. Gajeel felt pleased at seeing Daniel green with envy, and gave the man a shit eating grin just to rub it in. _Hm, he deserves it, especially if thought he could get into my Bunny's pants without my say so… _Gajeel thought arrogantly to himself, though the slayer had to admit, Lucy touching his head did actually feel quite nice.

Pleasurable goose bumps rose up, and a little shiver slivered down his spin as her nicely cooled fingers stroked his tresses. All while this happened, the blonde beauty stared down at the dragon slayer, smiling softly at how at how peaceful he looked, which was a rare look, considering that most of the time he looked as if he was about to burn an entire house down, whether it be he was pissed or not. And if Lucy was to be honest, she loved that look on his face and greedily wanted more of it; however the grass isn't always greener on the other side, and it Gajeel was like that all the time, well he wouldn't exactly be Gajeel, now would he.

_I do have to admit, it is a nice contrast to the scowls he always gives, _Lucy thought to herself with a faint smile.

The black haired man shut his eyes, letting a sense of calming to wave over him. He then hesitantly opened his ruby orbs, only slightly, and saw his view was completely covered by Lucy's bountiful breasts. The iron dragon slayer smirked to himself, shutting his eyes and once again, focusing on her cool digits.

And while Lucy and Gajeel were so enclosed in their own world, they seemed to have shut out Daniel completely, who currently stared at them with a glare of displeasure; though displeasure was putting it lightly. The blonde had claimed that they weren't together, and the black haired man didn't object, but from the eyes of the other man in the room, it looked as if they were a new couple. Though they weren't showing off their new-found love like most new couples do, they were being too affectionate with each other, something that caused Daniel to clench his hands against the arm rails, trying to hold in the urge to rip them apart from each other then and there.

He could already practically see it: they're friends now, but then as they spend more time with each other they'll soon realize they have feelings for one another, then they'll eventually become lovers and so on. _No, this can't happen. I refuse to allow this to happen! _Daniel screamed inwardly to himself, biting his lip to the point blood started to drizzle down his chin.

Seconds, then minutes, and finally, hours passed. The celestial mage didn't seem to notice; only staring out in the distance as the train moved by, watching the scenery change, her hands never stopping once while they made their journey through his hair and on his scalp. Gajeel on the other hand, ended up in a peaceful sleep, lying on his side. Then, there was Daniel; he had lain down as well, but couldn't seem to fall asleep. And whenever he got frustrated enough, he'd glance at the blonde's way, grinding his teeth in slight jealousy, but mostly in fury. He wished that she was over on his side now, rubbing his head as she lulled him to sleep, and then Gajeel would be the one watching them, fuming with jealousy, but it appeared the stars weren't in Daniel's favor. Instead, Daniel stayed on his side, forcing his mind to take him away to a dark, shadowy place called Dreamland, trying to endure the occasional bumps and shaking from the train.

"Attention, all those exciting for Jukina will need to leave in the next twenty minutes," an annoying, screeching voice said over the intercom. Lucy jumped slightly, so far into her thoughts that she didn't know how much time passed by. The blonde then sighed, grabbing her partners arm and shaking him slightly to wake him up. The pierced man grunted in return, mumbling nonsense under his breath as his moved around a bit to make himself more comfortable.

She sighed softly, "Gajeel, get up, we made it." She grabbed his arm more roughly, shaking him a bit harder. Gajeel moaned, his eyelids snapping baring his ruby red orbs. His eyes were filled with annoyance and anger; neither of which were directed at Lucy per say, but he was annoyed the blonde woke him from his peace filled slumber. "We made it to Jukina Gajeel; we have to leave now," Lucy said softly again, frowning at him.

"Fine, I'm up. I'm up," Gajeel grumbled back, smirking at little bit at the sassiness he displayed. Lucy rolled her eyes playfully, lightly nudging his head off, and getting up, stretching her stiff limbs. She groaned when she felt a nice pull on her muscles and when she heard a few cracks release. Gajeel rolled his eyes as well, sitting up and stretching a little bit before he grabbed their bags.

Neither one noticed the dangerous, lethal gleam that entered their guest's eyes.

"Oh, Gajeel, I forgot to ask why Lily isn't traveling with us," she questioned as the duo started to make their way off the train.

"He decided he was going to sit this one out, but he'll definitely be with us on our next job," Gajeel answered, which made Lucy's heart beat a little faster. She pressed a palm against her heart. _He wants to go on another job with me? Even though he hasn't seen me on one yet,_ Lucy questioned to herself, smiling when she realized just how nice Gajeel was treating her, especially when she considered how Gajeel usually treat others; distant, detached, and sometimes unkind. But he tried hard, Lucy saw that, acknowledged it, and that was the one of the main reasons she forgave him for she saw just how hard he was trying to make it right to everybody, but it was all secretly and in his own way. And since it was like that, not a lot of Fairy Tail forgave him as fast for they didn't truly see just exactly what Gajeel was doing for them.

"Oh okay, I was just wondering, after all, you and Lily are usually always together," Lucy wondered aloud. Gajeel shrugged him shoulders in response, not wanting to tell the blonde that he suspected that the reason why Lily didn't go along, was because he had a stupid idea of the two of them getting together, and probably wanted to give them space. "Okay, so where do we go first," the blonde beauty asked cheerfully, looking up to her dark haired partner. She didn't know where the person who requested was staying at; the flyer seemed deprived of the information.

"First, we should go find a hotel to stay at," Gajeel answered back, already walking away to find a place to crash. Lucy suddenly noticed his leave and hurried her way over to him, trying to stay up with his fast pace.

As the blonde glanced around, she noticed the looks she was receiving, but immediately tried to ignore them, holding her head high as her eyes filled with dignity and a look that screamed respect. Men walking down the sidewalk next to them eyed the blonde with interest and lust filled eyes, and from the looks of it the entire town, she knew she would be considered exotic here in Jukina. All the other people the duo passed had dark features; tan or olive skin, brown or black hair, and dark, almost bland colored irises. Now she knew why Daniel had said he hadn't seen her before in Jukina; it was because if someone with such light features like her, with her blonde hair and her creamy skin, her brown eyes being the only feature that made her fit in, she would be remembered distinctly by the locals.

_Great, this job is already turning out to be a little tiresome. _Lucy sighed to herself, started to feel herself become frustrated and annoyed with the leering gazes she was receiving.

Gajeel looked down at Lucy, and saw her actions; he raised a single eyebrow then looked up at his surroundings, finding a couple of the dark featured men of Jukina eying the poor blonde. Glaring loathingly, he couldn't help but let out a sigh himself. _This is going to be a long mission_, the two both thought to themselves simultaneously.

**To be continued…**

**Revised 10/27/2016**

_A/N: Here comes another chapter! And two days in a row, I'm so proud. Like I said before, trying to update way more than before because of me deleting my many before chapters. _

_To DarthMaine__: Hmm… Maybe, maybe not. All I can say is it's going to come crashing down._

_To All-american rejects__: Right?! You go GaLu:3_

_To Le Magic Taco__: Thank you so much! I am glad it is better than before. Lol, may the ships be ever in your favor. Also, I want to thank you for pointing it out when no one else did, it makes me glad._

_To mariawalker112__: Thank you so much! I hope you like this chapter. This one has been hard on me as well as the next one I'm currently writing; writers block owns me-.-_

_To FW Wandering__: Okay, well, if your okay with spoilers, then continue reading, but if you're not, then stop here…. Yes, she will. I don't like it when they keep her there after all Lucy's been through, and I know a lot of people say she's just running away from her problems, but she's actually not. She's starting anew, and moving on, and in order to do that, she has to leave her past behind her. So yes, she will be quitting the guild. _


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Mission Time**

**3rd POV**

"So wait, the job flyer is missing the information about the address we should go to," Lucy pointed out, and she was right. The job lacked information of where to go to tell the person they have accepted this request, and where to go to get the reward.

"Already thought of that Bunnygirl; I asked the Demon early this morning where we should go for that stuff. She told me the address for it," Gajeel answered.

"Okay, that's great that you thought of that, so where are we exactly going," the blonde asked.

"Asbury Street, and we don't even need to know the house number, it's the only mansion there," Gajeel answered. Lucy nodded, continuing on with their journey, the duo fell into a comfortable silence, one that soothed her, and yet, freaked her out a little bit. During her time when her father neglected her, and all she had for friends and family were her amazing spirits and the servants in her household, well, she found herself in silence a lot. At first, it sort of weirder her out, she wasn't use to so intense silence, but then, she would feel herself panic, and freak out and that was when usually realized one simple fact: she was completely, and utterly alone. Her father probably hated her very existence, her dear mother was gone, and she had been forced into solitude for her father found it unnecessary for her to have friends; it was one of the reason she loved Fairy Tail for it was loud and full of life. And yet with Gajeel, whenever she fell into a comfortable silence with him, she of course freaked out a little for of her past, but yet, she felt calm, and it felt nice; she could sense his presence, and it gave her reassurance.

Then, thoughts filled the blonde's head, and for some strange reason, her thoughts were turning to Levy; the person she used to call her best friend. Levy really, _really, _liked Gajeel, and had told Lucy after a couple weeks after he had came here. At first Lucy thought maybe it was because she was attracted to him, which confused her because of what he did to her, after all, they didn't talk once since he tried to apologize and ended up getting beat up by her two shadows. But then, it was Fantasia, and it was obvious; Levy's simple attraction had turned to a full-on crush, and that caused Lucy's current heart to quake in pain at the thought.

"Gajeel, can I ask you something," Lucy asked, wringing her fingers shyly in front of her. Lucy, by no means, was shy, she usually was confident, and the most shy she got was when she blushed and glanced away, so Gajeel could see something was obviously wrong.

"Sure," he answered normally, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well… um…" Lucy suddenly regretted speaking out, but then she saw her savior. "Oh look, we're here!" Lucy looked cheerfully at the luxurious mansion before her very sight, and grabbed Gajeel by the arm, hurriedly pulling him so that she didn't have to face embarrassment.

Gajeel suddenly stopped, pulling the blonde to a halt and causing her to turn towards him with confusion sparking in her eyes. "Just because we're here doesn't mean I'm letting you what you said just a couple minutes ago. Don't think you're going to get out of this," Gajeel warned with narrowed eyes, wondering what she had wanted to ask him that was so strange, it got to the point that she shied away. The pierced man then turned and walked up to the mansion, looking like nothing ever happened, and knocked on the door.

"Why hello, what's a young couple like you coming to a place like this," a young pretty black haired maid asked, opening the door. She smiled at Gajeel, and only briefly glanced at Lucy.

"We accepted a request with this address," Gajeel answered, completely dismissing the whole 'couple' part.

"Ah, Fairy Tail mages," the maid said, looking at the symbol on Gajeel's biecep, she then tore her eye's slowly from his muscular arms, almost like she didn't want to. "Well then, c'mon in; I'm sure my mistress and my master will be glad of your arrival." The iron dragon slayer walked in, followed by his celestial mage partner. When they walked in, the first thing they noticed that the inside was a lot bigger than the outside, and was very roomy.

"This way," the maid said, walking up the stairs with her hips swaying dramatically. Gajeel simply snorted, inwardly cringing; he knew what this maid was trying to do, and honestly, it wasn't working at all. He wasn't like the ass he was when he was in Phantom Lord, because if he was, he would've already done the maid and left without another word. And then there was a fact that disgusted him which was the fact that the maid had thought that him and Lucy were a couple, and she still tried to make moves at him. Cheating like that, was completely disgusting. If there were a couple things that Gajeel would never stoop to ever, it would be cheating and rape. Sure the blacked haired man had sex with a few girls, but it was always one night stands, and he made sure to keep them at a distance so that the girls wouldn't think too much of it. But if he ever were in a relationship, cheating would be something he'd never do.

"Stay outside, I'll tell them of your arrival," the maid said, opening a huge door, and walking inside, leaving Gajeel with the blonde beauty, who neither them have spoken to each other since the second they entered the mansion. Lucy didn't seem all that upset about the maid making small passes that were almost barely noticeable for she was used to it now with how much time she spent in the guild, trying to distract her brain from the looks she received from a certain blunette girl.

The door opened again with a long squeak, "Master and mistress would like to speak with you now." Gajeel and Lucy nodded, the two walking into the room. They came upon a large room, with wide open space, with a middle aged man, who had brown hair, tan skin, and brown eyes, seated in a desk that was in the middle of the room, and next to his side, stood a middle aged woman, with brown hair as well but she had creamy skin and sparkling blue eyes, who smiled kindly at the duo.

"So, you must be the Fairy Tail mages from the request I put out. It's nice to meet you, I am Will Jackson, and this is my lovely wife, Margret Jackson." He introduced, getting up from his seat and motioning for Gajeel and Lucy to walk closer to them.

"Hi, I'm Lucy Heartfillia, and this is Gajeel Redfox," Lucy said cheerfully, sticking her hand out. Will smiled, shaking her hand, as well as Margret.

"It's very nice to meet you, and I hope that the maid who brought you in, Cecilia, didn't make so many moves on you," Will said, looking at Gajeel. "I want to fire her very much, for she seems to make such vulgar and suggestive passes at all the young men like you who enter my mansion, but sadly, her mother and her need the money, so until they can pull themselves back up, I sort of have to deal with it." Will sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Anyways, let's get down to business shall we? Through generations, the Jackson family have kept four necklaces that have passed down from generation to generation, usually it was the mother passing it down to their daughters, but for me, it was my mother passing it down to me, so I could give it to my wife whenever I got married, and she could pass it down to our children. One necklace is one made out of sapphires, the second one is made out of real rubies, the third one is made out of real emeralds, and the fourth one is made out of real diamonds. However, no matter how long the generation has been going on, I decided I was going to break the tradition, and give the Buford family our necklaces in a sign of peace, for the Buford family and the Jackson family have been at what I call 'business war' for as long as we've been around. The problem is, is that the Buford family resides in Crocus, and well, I'm not allowed to ride on trains anymore because of my bad back, and I don't feel comfortable sending my wife, so would you please help us?"

"Yes, of course," the blonde answered seriously, secretly touched by how much the man cared for his wife; it was evident in his eyes, and the way he would glance her way. "But if it's too much to ask, I would to know why you don't give the Buford's something else, I mean, isn't those necklaces very special to you since it's been in your family for a long time?"

"It was special to me, once upon a time, and when Margret and I had a beautiful daughter, we gave it to her when she was old enough. Sadly, our daughter died, she was murdered, and now, the necklaces just remind us of our loss for our daughter worshiped those necklaces, she loved antique jewelry, so we, well at least I, don't care much for them anymore." Will says sadly. And as much as the blonde celestial mage wanted to point he should keep them, she held her tongue; it was his decision. Shaking his head, Will walked over to a case, opening it up and showing it to Lucy and Gajeel to show them the necklaces that seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. He then closed it handed it out to Gajeel. "I hope you take very good care of them, an act of peace with the Buford family is something the Jackson's need desperately.

"Don't worry, we won't let you down," Lucy answered seriously. The duo then left the man, holding the wooden case close to her chest

**To be continued…**

_A/N: So I'm sorry I cut it there. I was going to continue it more, like write the whole job on this chapter, but I decided to just cut it there. _

_To Erzamafuni: Thank you so much, I like Mira as a sister to Lucy so much, that I decided I needed to involve her in the story._

_To Kelsey Sullivan: Thank you, I hoped you enjoy this chapter. _


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Concern is Heart Melting**

**Lucy POV**

I sighed, walking quietly behind Gajeel. He was killing me here with the silence that felt deadly. And it didn't help that I was all jumpy, expecting him to ask me what I was going to say earlier. I can't believe I even opened my mouth in the first place, it just sprouted out of me, and I didn't even get a chance to stop myself. Now here I am, paying the consequences for my annoying brain and my loud mouth. _Get a hold of yourself Lucy, I thought you said you were going to try to do amazing on this mission, _my thoughts screamed, and I realized they were right. Here I am, paranoid just about when Gajeel was going to bring it up, when I should be paying more attention to the mission we currently were on. I needed to stay alert. These woods were infested with bandits, who would love to steal so rare, antique, and most of all, expensive jewels.

Suddenly, I felt my body collide with Gajeels back, and when I looked up to get mad at him for not announcing he was stopping, the iron dragon slayer raised a hand as if to say 'quiet.' I nodded my head against his back since Gajeel couldn't see me, so at least he could feel that I understood. We waited quietly for a couple seconds, and I tried to have my ears focus on the sounds around me, trying to hear what Gajeel was hearing. I then heard the faint sounds of twigs and sticks snapping, like someone was stepping on them. Gajeel glanced back at me, and I nodded in return; I knew that look in his eye, and it said 'get ready to fight.' I touch my keys, ready to call upon either Loke, Taurus, or Virgo, but that all depended on the amount of people attacking us.

Then, I heard a loud yell and turned to a group of guys, who stood all behind a muscular, bulky man with dark purple hair. "Well, well, well boys, look what we have here. A sexy blonde, and a monstrous guy, quiet the duo, don't ya think." He said, walking up to us.

"Finally, some asses to beat; I've been waiting all day for this," Gajeel grinned evilly, cracking his knuckles, but not before handing me the case with the jewelery, giving me a look that said he was trusting me to protect them. I nodded seriously at him. Then, in a split second, Gajeel attacked the right of the group of bandits, while I leaped into attack on the left side. "Open, Gate of the Golden Lion, Leo," I yelled, and Loke popped up in a cloud of gold dust, and instantly helped me with the fight. I used my whip to wrap around a couple of the guy's legs, flipping them over and sometimes flipping them far behind me, making them land roughly on either the ground or against a tree. This made me inwardly wince, wondering just how hard the must've hit, and how hard it must've hurt.

I quickly glanced at Gajeel, having a surge of concern for him, only to see he was currently fighting off three guys; completely fine. Then, suddenly, hands wrapped themselves around my throat, and I felt my air get cut in half. I panicked at the shortage of oxygen, clawing at the person's hand. I then remembered that if you had control of their wrist, you controlled their hands, so I gripped the person's wrist, and dug my fingernails into their skin, using all the strength I could manage to rip their hands away from my throat. The person chocking me let out a strangled cry of pain, and released their hold. I collapsed onto the ground, sputtering, and then glanced at the man who had been holding me throat and as quickly as I could, I flung my whip at him, capturing him by his torso and flinging him as far as I could.

"Dang Bunny, you didn't have to throw him that hard. He'll probably end up in the hospital for a month because of you," Gajeel's voice said. I jumped around behind me and found him with a cocky smirk while he stood calmly with his arms crossed around bodies of unconscious bandits. I felt my eyes widen largely when I noticed just how hard he fought them. _I wonder why he fought so hard? _My thoughts questioned, but shook it away; he could of just forgot how powerful he it.

"Humph, I didn't throw him that hard," I muttered, feeling suddenly embarrassed. My partner in return let out a familiar chuckle, and I then remembered that he probably heard me due to his heightened senses. "Anyways, we should continue forward before more of them come."

Gajeel nodded, taking the necklace case of my hands and walking forward. I then felt my earlier conflict come back into my brain and groaned inwardly. The iron dragon slayer has yet to mention about the whole 'about to ask him a question, but decided against it' thing.

**Gajeel POV**

I was okay with just fighting the bandits, wasn't expecting to knock them out, just rough them up some and leave with Bunnygirl. Then, I saw that man chocking my blonde partner, and it strangely struck a chord with me. I was going to help her out, but I could saw her easily take control of the situation and I then focused on fighting the guys around me instead. Before I knew it, released the power I was holding back before and let it out on all those bandits. I wasn't sure what was the reason was as to why I suddenly was violent like that, but what I knew for sure, was that it was somehow tied back to Bunny. I wasn't stupid; just confused as to why I was feeling like that. But once I saw and heard Bunny was alright, I felt myself calm done, and sense of pride as to how well my blonde partner took control of the chokehold and then flung the man like a slingshot.

I continued forward, making sure to take the case for me to hold. And I knew full well that Bunnygirl was fidgeting nervously behind me, and I knew full well as to why. She was nervous about me forcing her to ask her what she was going to ask earlier, and was waiting for the moment when I did. I couldn't help but roll my eyes and smirk at her actions. If I was some insecure school girl, I would be worried about Bunny fidgeting nervously and assume that she was scared of me. However, I knew she wasn't afraid. We may have been in the guild, but due to the fact that most of the guild doesn't really care about my actions, and was currently ignoring Bunny, we were basically alone whenever we were in the guild, except for Mira of course, and sometimes Lily. And I knew that she stopped being scared of me the second she forgave me for everything I did to her, Levy, and the guild.

A pull on my forearm pulled me from my thoughts and looked down to see the familiar blonde who had occupied my thoughts staring up at me. "Uh…" she said, her cheeks dusting with a blush. I raised an eyebrow at her actions but then pushed them away. "Do you think we should try to push towards Crocus, or should we camp out in these woods?"

I glanced towards the sun and saw that it was nearing sunset, and we wouldn't be able to make it to Crocus unless we walked in the dark. "Let's camp out," I said simply. "We should find a cave, that'll keep us warmer that camping out here."

Bunny nodded seriously. "I saw a cave about a couple meters back. We could use it for tonight." I agreed and the two of us made our way over to the cave she had seen. I had to admit, Bunnygirl was quite handy. If it wasn't for her, I would've fought two times as much as bandits, and I hadn't noticed the cave, so, I would've spent the time looking around for the cave. I decided I like her as a partner, and wanted to do another job with her again. _Or possibly make her my partner; my mate. She's mine; _my inner dragon growled and felt confusion prick at me. Why does my inner dragon keep repeating that phrase? I ignored my inner dragon and noticed that Bunnygirl and I were standing in front of a cave.

In a comfortable silence, the blonde and I set up camp. Bunny offered having her spirit Virgo do it, but I stated that we should just go set up the camp. Bunnygirl was strong, no doubt about that, but if she just got a little one-on-one training, she could be so strong she could put the sword lady to shame.

"Wait, Gajeel, there's only one tent." Bunny pointed out.

"It's big enough for the both of us. It would've been too heavy to bring two tents instead of one. And don't worry, I ain't 'going to make a move on you," I snorted, noticing the suggestive look on the blonde's face. A golden flash then appeared and out came the lion boy.

"No, I refuse for my princess to sleep in the same tent as you," he said, glaring his fullest at me while trying to block Bunnygirl from me.

"Loke!" Bunny yelled. "What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to protect you from _him, _I was barley fine with you doing a job with him, but I cannot accept you sharing a tent with him," the lion answered, and almost like a time bomb, that seemed to set the bunny off.

"Loke, I don't belong to you, I'm not even dating you. I understand that you are just trying to protect me, but you are going too far," Bunnygirl answered, starting off with a calm voice and ending with an almost yell. The lion flinched back, looking in pain from the words thrown at him from Bunny.

The lion sighed. "I'm sorry my princess. I just… wanted to protect you," Loke said small like. Bunny sighed back, placing a hand on his shoulder, and accepted his apology. I clenched my jaw, trying to hold back a punch I wanted to throw at the lion while my inner dragon growled. Loke then left, leaving Bunny behind to apologize to me for her spirit friend's outrageous behavior.

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy sat next to the fire, holding out her chilled hands. The cave was indeed warm and provided shelter, but the cold, moist air from the rain outside flew into their current shelter. Gajeel on the other hand, was lazing around, lying near the fire with his arms crossed behind his head and his eyes shut, intently listening to the sound of Lucy's breaths. The black haired man had been angry at a certain lion spirit who had made it clear of his dislike of the blonde beauty staying with him and, had before, disliked the fact that they were on a mission together.

"Gajeel," the blonde said lightly. The iron dragon slayer hummed in response.

"If you're going to sleep, you should go into the tent. I don't think it's a good idea to sleep here, you might get sick," Lucy blurted out genuinely. She knew Gajeel's attitude wouldn't give a flying crap about the possibility of getting sick, but she didn't want him to get sick.

The iron dragon slayer grunted in return but nothing, him and his inner dragon was still trying to comprehend the fact that the blonde beauty cared about his health. "We should hit the sack soon, give us enough rest for tomorrow," was all he said after a pregnant silence, then headed over to the tent. Lucy sighed, but not sadly or embarrassed. I was just a sigh from thinking about just how much she and her iron-eating partner did today. Slowly, the blonde mage rose to her feet, and headed over to the single tent the two shared. She went inside, finding Gajeel already snug in his sleeping bag, and went over to her own. Lucy then realized that watching his face while he was sleep on the train, wasn't going to be the last time. Even though his back faced her, Lucy could imagine the rare, yet familiar peaceful expression on his features, and she then smiled absent mindedly to herself before wrapping herself up in the warm, comfort-filled sleeping bag that seem to pull her instantly to sleep land.

After a couple hours, a noise woke the dragon slayer up. "Urg," Gajeel mumbled, sitting up in his sleeping bag. These were one of the moments when he hated the fact that his senses were heightened because the littlest noises seemed to pull him from his slumber, and that always seem to put him in a cranky mood. Gajeel clenched his fists, ready to hit the person or the thing that ruined his sleep, but released his tension when he realized that the noise was in fact, his blonde partner, who was shaking and sniffling, probably due to the cold. He then realized that the fire must've went out earlier than he had thought, and from the rain that still poured outside, the cold had gotten to her.

If it had been anybody else, Gajeel would've just yelled at them for waking him up, not giving a care about them. But for some reason, the iron dragon slayer felt his features soften at the sight of Lucy shaking. Gajeel moved to the bag at the corner of the tent, and grabbed out the blanket he packed just in case, and drapped it over the blonde, finding himself smirking in pride when he saw her almost instantly stop shaking and subconsciously snuggling more into the blanket that was probably horded his scent. The black haired man then went laid down once more, finding sleep lulling him to sleep.

**Lucy POV**

Zipping up my bag, I repacked and shoved the pajamas I wore last night inside. Gajeel was nearby, taking down the tent despite my earlier protests. I remembered he said something like I would pack it up next time, which made my heart flutter. It was twice he had stated some kind of reference as to us going on another job, which also made my soul fill with pride thinking that he wouldn't take anybody as a partner.

When we finally finished packing, and after I had Virgo hold onto our bags in the spirit world, I held onto the necklaces this time, thinking that it was only fair that we trade off holding it. "Alright Bunnygirl, let's get a move on," Gajeel said, already making his way to Crocus. I followed behind him, making sure to be wary of the sounds of the forest. After yesterday, and how I didn't manage to hear the footsteps of the ambushing bandits, I decided to train my ears to hear the littlest things, but I wasn't sure if I possibly could since Gajeel mainly could hear it because of his dragon slaying senses.

But I soon found myself distracted. I looked up at the sky, I saw the pretty colors of red, orange, yellow, and slight pink water painted together. Although I liked the sight, I preferred when the sky was dark and filled with a bunch of twinkling stars. It reminded me so much of my mother, and of my magic. I looked away, trying to rid my mind of the thoughts of my mom, because I feared that I would start crying even though it was so long ago, and I continued to follow the iron dragon slayer in front of me.

"Bunny, hear that."

"…Yeah, it sounds like civilization."

"We're nearby, let's keep moving and finish this request."

"Aye!" I said in mock salute, smiling when Gajeel grunted in return and continued our path. Although I knew this job wasn't as hard as others were, I already felt like this mission tiring me. My feet was starting to ache, my knees started to prick with a sharp pain, but I wasn't going to use Horologium to help me; I was far from the girl who used her spirits just to help her travel painlessly.

"And here we are," Gajeel said, pulling me from my thoughts. I looked up to find the familiar land of Crocus.

"Finally," I blurted, not being able to hold back a sigh of relief. Gajeel chuckled at me, eying my slouched posture due to the pain. I couldn't help but glare at him. "What?"

"Sheesh Bunny, we didn't walk that much," he answered followed by his signature laugh.

"That's only because you're in shape," I mumbled with the same glare on my face, looking down at the ground in embarrassment because I knew he would hear me.

Gajeel laughed again, ruffling my hair a bit, which caused me to pat down my now ruined hair. "C'mon Bunny, let's go take you and your unfit body and go find the Buford residence." I glared up at him, not being able to retort since I had admitted earlier I wasn't as athletic as he was.

"First, we should ask someone where they arm. From the sounds of it, the Buford's are a family of wealth which would mean somebody around here would know where they are. And since they are rich, then it wouldn't be uncommon other people would ask about them," I stated thoughtfully, pressing my index finger against my chin. He nodded in what it seemed like not only agreement, but also in almost like a compliment with the glint in his ruby orbs.

I glanced around, my eye's settling upon a man about a couple years older than myself who looked non-threatening and friendly enough with the smile on his face, so, I went up to him. "Excuse me sir, I just want to ask you a question," I said, patting the man on his shoulder. He turned to face me and smiled brightly at me.

"Sure honey, what is it," he asked.

"I'm looking for the Buford family residence, and just was wondering where it was," I said.

"Ah, actually, you're pretty close. See that street down there, there's a giant mansion on that, and that'll be the Buford residence. Can't miss it."

"Thank you!" I said, turning back to Gajeel only to find his nostrils slightly flared with anger. "Gajeel, what is it?" I asked, feeling concern filling me.

"Nothing Bunnygirl, let's just go," was all he said, not looking at me. He then walked off, heading in the way of the street.

I couldn't help but feel like there was something important that he wasn't telling me, so, trying to not be pushy, I softly placed a hand on his arm, which made him stop right in his tracks. "You know, if there is anything you need to talk about, you can tell me," I said softly, looking down in order to push away the blush that grew onto my cheeks and lingered there. He didn't say anything, but I had a feeling he knew and slowly, I removed my hand, and started to walk to the Buford mansion, fantasizing about a nice, long, hot bath, but then inwardly groaned, realizing an important aspect: we have to go back through the woods to get to Jukina to get our reward.

**3****rd**** POV**

"Ah, so you have brought the necklaces from the Jackson family," the head of the family, an elderly woman, said. She smiled softly at the two mages in front of her, who seemed like such an odd pair, that they might actually work.

"Yes, here they are," Lucy said, handing out the case of fine jewelry.

"Thank you so much."

"Of course," the blonde answered the elderly woman, smiling her brightest. The head of the family noticed she did all the talking while her gruff looking partner stood on the sideline, looking indifferent and detached.

"Anyways, I think that since it seems that the whole truce between our two families is only directed from the Jackson side, I decided that I am going to pay for your reward so the two of you can get home already," the head of the Buford family said, noting the barley there yet still there look of exhaustion on the blonde's features.

Lucy didn't even want to say no. She was too tired to try and not to intrude on the lady. "Thank you so much, that would be much appreciated," the celestial mage said, smiling a wry smile.

What Lucy didn't know, was that all hell and Zeref kind of madness would break lose when she got back to the place she called home.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: I am so sorry this is sort of a crappy chapter and is rushed, and it's also extremely long. I hit a small writer's block and just wanted to get the mission over with even though I was trying to use the mission to show how in sync Lucy and Gajeel become when working together. Reminder: I don't own Fairy Tail, but I do own Jukina because it's an imaginary place I made; if I did, Gajeel and Lucy would've been together. By the way, the whole thing about controlling the wrist when someone is trying to choke you it actually correct in real life; you control the wrist, you can control them. And the thing about caves giving the best shelter is also correct in real life because caves can hold in moisture and heat and also can cover you from the weather. _

_To Reader 56885__: Thank you so much! I am glad it pleases you especially since I know some people dislike GaLu since they like GaLe._

_To FW Wandering__: Well, I can't tell you anything yet, but, let's just say they aren't exactly jerks, just, don't understand at the moment is all I can say, but yeah, if I was master, I would probably be extremely mad at my guild for how they are treating they're so-called "nakama."_

_To Ezramafuni__: Thank you, I hope this chapter was good, to me though, it doesn't seem as good, but if it is bad, I can promise you the next chapter will be better!_

_To All-american rejects__: No it's quite alright, if you want more of something in the story whether be more Levy thoughts about Gajeel and Lucy, or more GaLu moments I'll be happy to oblige, except when it interfers with my plot for this story. But the reason I didn't put very much GaLu fluff in the last chapter was because I was trying to catch how the two sync together when fighting or just when they are together. _

_To mariawalker112__: Yes! Thank you! I'm trying to make this different than the earlier chapters and change up the plot more._


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: All Hell Has Broken Loose**

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy stretched my limbs, sighing in content when she felt her muscles loosen. She looked down at her lap, finding the head of a certain iron dragon slayer lying upon it. She ran her fingers through his long, silky black locks, her cheeks burning with a blush. His hair was just so warm, and smooth, and that seemed to make her think back to Natsu. Whenever she did this for him, she would be fine with it at first, but his body heat was way too hot and she would soon feel like there was a bucket of molten lava lying on her lap instead. And what she found that she liked about Gajeel's hair, was that it long enough for her to play with, which she found fun, while Natsu's salmon hair was too short for her to play with.

Gajeel mumbled something not understandable under his breath before slightly moving onto his side. The blonde couldn't help but let out a giggle, thinking that the so-called tough dragon slayer looked like a little kid when he was asleep. Feeling a boost of confidence surge through her, Lucy poked the black haired man's cheek light, trying to hold in a bus load of giggles when she saw him first scrunch his nose, then twitch it.

She then felt a sudden urge to kiss his cheek, but pushed it away, shocking herself at the discovery. _I wonder why I wanted to kiss him… I mean it's not like I like him like that; we're just friends. Besides, once Fairy Tail gets back to normal he might go back to being acquaintances with me; he'll probably just end up with Levy, _the blonde thought herself, and then felt her heart throb painfully. She then realized she never wanted to let go of the friendship she currently held with Gajeel. She wanted to stay friends with him forever. She wanted to continue going on missions with him, talking to him at the guild, and all in all, she just wanted to be near him. She felt relaxed whenever he was nearby, and most of all, she felt like herself near him. She knew that that situation used to be whenever she was with Team Natsu, once upon a time, but now that she thought about it, Lucy wasn't sure if things can go back to the way they used to if she did go back to Team Natsu. That month long separation from them caused a lot of things to get messed up. Lucy wasn't sure if she could still be the same cheerful, kind, blonde with them like last time. In fact, she was pretty sure she would end up being awkward with them, and probably be awkward just talking to them. After all, she spent the entire month talking to only the gruff iron dragon slayer, Mira, and a couple others which made Lucy feel happy because they had still treated her like her nakama.

A loud, screeching voice came over the intercom, knocking the celestial mage out of her thoughts. It announced they had made it their stop. "Gajeel," she whispered, shaking his arm to wake him up.

"Urg," was his only response before he snuggled into her more, making Lucy blush a deep, deep red. "Five more minutes Bunny," he continued absent mindedly.

Lucy frowned at the saying, wondering why he would even say that. Shouldn't he have said Pantherlily, or even Levy? They had been with him more when he was asleep. So why did he say her name? The blonde then just figured he said that because it was her voice he had heard. "Gajeel, get up," she said a bit stricter. Gajeel mumbled something not understandable. "Gajeel, if you don't get up in the next five seconds I'm going to scream into your ear," the blonde threatened, knowing Gajeel wouldn't risk hurting his sensitive hearing. When the pierced man didn't answer her Lucy started to count down, smirking the entire time. "One… Two… Three… Four…"

"Okay! Okay, I'm up. Jeez Bunny," Gajeel said, sitting up almost immediately and sticking his hands up in surrender; he knew not to mess with Bunnygirl, especially when she threatened to Bunny Kick you, damn those things hurt.

"Let's go, we're here."

Gajeel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He then remembered his dream and felt his cheeks grow warm but held it down; Gajeel Redfox didn't blush dammit. And the fact that his dream had revolved around Lucy didn't help. "Gajeel, you ready," she suddenly asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

"Yeah."

The duo walked out of the train, lugging their baggage behind them. "Are you going to go back to the guild later," Lucy asked, standing in the train station in front of Gajeel. She was hoping he would say yes, even though they had spent the last couple of days together she still wanted to hang out with him.

"Only if you're going Bunnygirl," he answered, giving her his signature grin. Lucy had to hold her blush down, but it was too late for that, noticing how his handsome features lit up with that simple grin.

"Yeah I am, so I see you there later," she asked, smiling brightly at him, the blush disappearing.

"Yeah," he answered softly, shocking the blonde for a second before she smiled softly at him. The dragon slayer ruffled her hair a bit before heading home. Lucy stood there for only a second, watching his back before she turned to walk her own way home, finding herself already missing him presence. What she didn't know, was that Gajeel was frowning with confusion as he walked to his apartment, and it was all because he found himself missing Bunnygirl's presence.

**Lucy POV**

I had taken a bath right away, letting the warm water relax me. After I had taken my bath, I decide to finish unpacking, knowing the second I put it off, I won't do it for a long while. I wasn't sure when Gajeel would be down at Fairy Tail, but I felt anxiety going there. If he wasn't there, I wasn't sure what I was going to do. I could talk to Mira, but she is usually busy with the bar. I could also talk to Juvia, surprisingly; we had gotten close, but she would probably be around Gray, drooling over his body, and I didn't really want to near him. I could stay with Wendy and Carla, but they had gone on a two week long mission. I could also hang out with Cana, she was the best option, the only thing I was scared about was the fact that she migt bring up that I went on a mission with Gajeel and would want all the "juicy" info. There was only one other person who talked to me, which was Master, but recently, the guild had been so excited about Lisanna coming back, they have been more excessive when it came to fighting on jobs which meant for the entire past month, Master Makarov has been doing paperwork. I wouldn't be surprised if he hadn't noticed that most of the guild has been ignoring me; I rarely ever see him because of the paperwork.

I felt myself sigh, finding myself doing that a lot of the time these days. I went over and pulled on a bubblegum pink crop top, accompanied with a black skirt instead of a mini-skirt, and some flip flops. I grabbed my keys and left my apartment, heading down to the guild.

Once I had gotten to the guild, I couldn't help but let out a pained breath. I used to be so comfortable there, and would be extremely happy whenever I woke up and would immediately go down to Fairy Tail. I can't' believe over a time of only four weeks, a whole month, I was now very uncomfortable going down the guild, only finding happiness in the fact that the select few who still talk to me are there. I grabbed the guild hall doors, and pulled them open, walking inside the loud guild.

And of course, I look over to see Team Natsu at their table, with none other than Lisanna there. I felt my heart throb painfully, but it strangely didn't hurt nearly as much as when I would think about Gajeel leaving me to date Levy. I shook the thought away and walked over to the bar, smiling happily when I saw Mira immediately go over to my direction. "Strawberry smoothie," she asked and I nodded. "So, how was your mission with Gajeel," she asked mischievously.

"It was fine Mira, actually, we worked together pretty well," I answered.

"Oh," she said with a large smirk and I finally realized what I had just said. I had just dug myself a grave. Before I could correct myself, she burst into a fit of giggles and happiness. "Black haired, brown eye babies! Blonde hair, red eye babies!" she squealed with excitement. Her hands clasped and her eyes dreamy.

"I didn't mean it like that!" I grumbled.

"Lucy," a voice said, breaking our conversation. Mira stopped day dreaming and we both turned to the object of the voice, finding none other than Natsu himself, with Team Natsu behind him and Lisanna.

"What's going on," a new, familiar voice growled, and I looked over to see Gajeel walking my way, his arms crossed and his nostrils flared in rage. I could see his cheeks were a bit flushed and knew he had just gotten here.

"We just want to talk to Lucy," Erza said, stepping up. I sent a curt nod her way, telling her to continue. "We're kicking you off our team." I felt my world come to a halt, my heart beating faster and painfully against my chest.

"Let's cut to the chase," Lisanna said, coming up next to Erza. "Tell her Natsu."

"You're just too weak, and we always have to save you almost all the time. Lisanna is way stronger than you, and she's a way more well of a person," he stated, which made me grimace. Natsu had been my first friend, my partner, my then best friend, and I remember I had crush on him once, but I lost my feelings when he forgot about me.

I opened my mouth to stand up for myself, but Gajeel beat me to the punch. "No way in hell is Lisanna stronger and better than Bunny. Bunny held her own when we were on our mission and I can honestly say, I can tell Lucy can beat white haired bitch in a fight just by looking at her," he snarled, clenching his fists, disregarding his offensive language. I smiled softly at Gajeel, and felt my stomach do flips. I don't know why, but I loved the fact that he was standing up for me.

"He's just saying that," a new voice said, and I saw it belonged to Levy, causing my stomach to drop once more; I feared for what my old friend would have to say about this, would she stand up for me? That was unlikely. "She's probably been seducing him to get him to say that, I mean, I would go as far as to say that I bet she even put a potion on him to make him like her." That was it; tears pushed against my eyes, but I held it back, refusing to let them see me cry, to let them see how truly weak I am.

"You really think I would let myself get poisoned? I just am standing up for someone who _was_ your best friend, _Levy_," Gajeel snapped at her, causing the blunette to flinch.

"Look, I agree with Gajeel. Lucy's strong and can hold her own just fine," Mira spoke up.

"What's wrong with all of you," Natsu screeched.

"More like, what's wrong with you? You and all of Fairy Tail have been ignoring me for an entire month, except for a small group of you who I really appreciate. But I dealt with it, because Lisanna came back when you all originally thought her to be dead, and I understood your excitement, but this… This is way too far, I'm not going to sit here and take this. You know what, screw all of you except for those who actually treated me like nakama like I did for all of you!" I started out quietly, then ended up yelling, catching the entire guild's attention. I then glared my fullest at everyone, and walked out of the guild.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: So, Lucy has now yelled at the guild, but this time, I added Mira and Gajeel standing up for her. So the reason I took so long to update was because I only got one review which made me think that I had done something bad in the last chapter but then I was like if they thought I did something wrong, they would've pointed it out so here's another chapter. Thank you for following/favorite and thank you Guest for reviewing!_

_To Guest: Thank you, that's so sweet! _


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Realization of the Truth**

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy continued to stomp her on the raining streets; she had never felt so angered, so betrayed, but most of all, she never had felt so hurt before. Nothing could compare to the amount of pain she felt right at that moment, at least when she was with her father he never gave her large amounts of false hope of having a family and friends, unlike what Fairy Tail had done to her. Arms suddenly wrapped themselves around her, and before the blonde had a chance to scream she heard a familiar voice. "Bunnygirl," Gajeel muttered with a sad tone with it that caused her heart to beat violently against her chest; she was sure she never wanted to hear his tone so sad ever again. If it had been any other time, Lucy would be freaking out and wondering why he was embracing her, but she was too pain filled to notice.

"It hurts," she cried out weakly, gripping onto his forearms like a life line. She felt as if Gajeel was the only person she could talk to right now, she wasn't sure if she wanted anyone else to see her like this. For the entire past month, she had been trying to prove to not only to Gajeel, but also to herself that she wasn't weak, but she had ultimately failed, and now where was she? Crying her heart out in the rain with an iron dragon slayer trying to comfort her. She liked the fact that he was trying his hardest to comfort her, if he wasn't, he wouldn't be here right now, but truthfully, it was only slightly helping.

How is it that a few seconds ago she felt so strong standing up to Fairy Tail only to feel so weak afterwards? To feel as if her world had been ripped apart and all she had left was a couple large pieces and some tiny shreds to fix it up with? "I know," she heard him whisper against her ear, sending small shivers down her spine, but she shook them away.

"I-I'm sorry Gajeel. You were in there standing up for me, saying that I'm strong, yet, here I am, being weak instead," Lucy apologized, lowering her head in shame. She was going to push out of his embrace, wondering if he would be disgusted holding someone so weak when he himself was so strong.

Suddenly, the blonde was spun around, still in the black haired mans hold, and was now face-to-face with him. She stared up at him with wide eyes, not sure what to think when she saw the hard, serious, yet angered look in his red orbs. "Don't. Ever. Say. That," the dragon slayer growled, his upper lip slightly curling as he snarled. "Lucy," he continued, placing his hands on her shoulders. "You are not weak, you never were. You are always strong, and always have been. Don't let the asshole's words get to you, because he's an idiot and completely dense, therefore, he can't say anything against you." Lucy's eyes widened with shock, before they glossed over with unshed tears.

"Th-thank you Gajeel," she answered, looking down.

The man just snorted in return. "Yeah, yeah, enough of the mushy stuff, alright?" he said, returning back to the same old Gajeel, making the blonde smile and giggle genuinely. Him saying mushy things just didn't suit him, but Lucy did admit, she liked it, but wouldn't like it if he acted that why forever, never stopping. The thought made Lucy shudder, imagining a Gajeel who was nice all the time; it was defiantly creepy.

"Alright you big, bad dragon, let's go back to my place." She said with a smile on her face, one that was completely genuine. The pierced man opened his mouth to retort but Lucy stopped him right at that. "And before you say anything, my apartment is the closest and if you haven't noticed, it's raining," she continued cheekily.

"Alright, jeez Bunny," Gajeel answered, before picking Lucy up bridal style, carrying her over to her apartment. The blonde let out a squeal of surprise and instantly wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him.

"What the heck Gajeel?" she yelled, squirming in his arms as she still held onto him; Lucy wasn't used to be carried by Gajeel.

"Could you be any louder," he grumbled. "Well, if I have to abide by your rules, you have to mine, which means, if we're going to stay at your apartment, I get to carry you," he answered with a large grin, making Lucy pout, but she said nothing, reminiscing in the feel of his large, strangely comforting arms holding her own body.

The two fell into a silence after that, the only sound being made was the sound of Gajeels footsteps in the water and the rain still pouring down on them. Lucy wondered if maybe the reason it suddenly started to rain after she left Fairy Tail had to do with Juvia, but Lucy shook that thought away. Despite the fact that Lucy and Juvia had became friends, she couldn't imagine the blue haired girl to be sad, after all, all of the things Gray says to Juvia has never really hurt it. But that single thought made her worry; she cared about Juvia, and maybe now that Gray is no longer the person the blonde knew he had actually offended the water mage for once.

Once Gajeel had made it to the steps of Lucy's apartment, he set her on the ground, allowing her to unlock the door, letting the both of the soaking wet mages inside. "You can have the shower first," Lucy said with a sad tone, the earlier humor the two held now gone like it had never been there in the first place. She walked into the kitchen and started to make some tea for the two of them, listening to the sounds of the shower head starting. The blonde smiled secretly to herself, knowing that is was so like Gajeel to not even say thank you. If had been any other person, she would be irritated they didn't say thank you to the kind action, but… for Gajeel… she didn't really need it. After all, his presence was enough for her; it was like payback. She was glad he was here.

**Gajeel POV**

I stripped off my wet clothes that clung to my body, throwing them onto the floor. I stepped into the shower, turning on the hot water and letting it take away any earlier coldness. As I stood in the shower, I thought about what had happened only minutes ago and felt my earlier rage rise. How dare flame prick and his team of dimwits do that to Bunny! She was way stronger than that wanna-be-seductive kitty cat. And the whole thing about Lucy being weak was way off. She had more guts than anybody I had ever known and she also had the strongest mental capability ever. I remembered when I had tortured her in the Phantom battle and I remembered being secretly in awe about how easily she was taking the beating, and was willing to do that all for a guild who stabbed her in the back in the end. Then afterwards, she had forgiven me, now I admit, forgiveness is a damn hard thing to do (I haven't been able to forgive anybody) but she forgave people so easily, it was shocking. Sure, her strength in her magic and in her fighting wasn't as strong, but she was pretty smart, and tactful.

I will admit one thing that team flame brain had right, which was she no longer belonged on their team, and that was because she was just way too good for them.

I paused for a second, rethinking my thoughts; shocked at myself for the way I was acting. When I first started to spend time with Bunny, I did it because I noticed others were ignoring her, and I felt I had to help in some way, after all, I still haven't forgiven myself for what I done to her, Levy, and all of Fairy Tail.

_You don't get it dimwit! Think about all of the things you like about Bunnygirl, _my inner dragon growled, snorting at the end with humor. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, what was it that I wasn't getting. _Dammit, now I sound like that dense idiot, _my thoughts snarled.

So I thought it over. I like the way Lucy forgives people easily, I like how she's kind to almost every person she's ever met. I like how she can be very feisty and how she squeals when she is shocked/scared. I love that she makes me laugh, and how we can fall into a silence together, and it's always comfortable. I just love how comfortable to feel around her in general, like I didn't have to act differently. I love her blonde hair, her beautiful body, she chocolate orbs, her scent, and her brilliant smile when she's extremely happy and her musical voice. And that's when I realized; it all made sense now, my inner dragon's constant nagging, how different I act with her… I was falling for Lucy.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Here's another chapter! So, Gajeel (finally!) realizes his feelings for Lucy! Hope you liked it! Now, all we have to do is wait for Lucy to realized her feelings (oh gosh, this might take a while folks). Oh, and did you see what I did there; slowly change like to love and how he actually said her real name! Oh and thank you for the so many reviews! And for favorite/following!_

_To FW Wandering__: Let's just say you should be suspicious of her. _

_To Rambadoodle__: Yeah I couldn't not have her leave Fairy Tail and just write some letters, I wanted her to say them herself._

_To All-american rejects__: I'm sorry! I hope you won't get too mad at me about this sort of cliff hanger. _

_To SuperPsycoNutcase__: Thank you and no it alright, I tend to do that too. It's just I get this feeling that maybe the I did something you guys didn't like in my last chapter because I enjoy feedback._

_To dragonsshadow89__: Thank you so much! Your review is much appreciated. _

_To OgaxHilda__: Thank you!_

_To Daniyia87__: Well, now you see him already figuring out his feelings. Though it might take a while for Lucy, she can sometimes be as dense as Natsu… And I'm glad you like it._

_To Daddys little crazy bitch__: Thank you, hope you enjoy this chappie!_

_To Kitten1318__: Yeah well it is, after all, a GaLu pairing. And though most fanfics that are GaLu make Levy okay with it, I knew she wouldn't because it was obvious in the anime she really liked Gajeel. _

_To katty6900__: Right?! That's my favorite part so far and of course she couldn't say anything bad about her sister like Gajeel has done, but she would stand up for Lucy._

_To walkesav000__: Thank you!_

_To elizabethbane__: Hmm, technically, it would be GaBu, that is until, or if he ever, starts to actually call her Lucy._

_T l1__: I know the lack of reviews doesn't dictate whether the story is good or not, but my mind sometimes think that there might be a part they hated or etc. Thank you for all the good things you've said. But I would like to point out a couple things. First of all, this is a romance fanfic; when doing those where the couples are a weird couple (crack shipping) and not together before, the characters will tend to act OOC at times because their original role wasn't meant for that. Besides, I try my hardest to keep them in character. Also, this story is just starting out! Counting this chapter and the prologue, there are ten in total. I plan on going over at least a forty or more chapter story. What I have planned is not going to be following the other fanfics because I did not say that she was going to train with someone or a group to get stronger… did I? There's going to be multiple twists in the story that I am planning and I am going to be adding a lot of difference's in there as well. Although you may look like it's going to be like the other stories I can assure you that it's not going to be like that. Anyways, your honesty and review was much appreciated!_


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Conflicted Feelings**

**3****rd**** POV**

Once Gajeel was done with his shower, which he made into a cold one after his realization, he changed into a pair of black shorts that Lucy had left out for him right outside his door which smelled a ton like a certain fire dragon slayer. Gajeel's guess was that they were that flame brain's shorts, but then that made him suspicious. Why did Bunny have a pair? His inner dragon growled with angrily, and the iron dragon slayer couldn't agree more; he loathed the idea of Lucy and Natsu, and then images started to fill his head of the two together; Natsu missing his clothes, Lucy just simply blushing at that drove him up the walls. But Gajeel managed to gain composure. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and decided just to ask Bunnygirl later about them since he knew that until he found out it was bug him to now end; sort of like how Natsu is with him all the time.

He walked out of the bathroom, shirtless of course, and made his way over to the kitchen. He found that Lucy had her back to him, giving his a perfect view of her scrumptious curves, and was currently pouring the boiling liquid into the cups. She had yet to notice his presence which made him smirk to himself. Once he saw her set the kettle down, he decided to make his presence known. "I'm done Bunnygirl," he muttered, loud enough for her to hear.

The wet blonde beauty jumped around to face him, and instantly found her cheeks heating up to a red that rivaled Erza's hair. Lucy knew he was going to have to be shirtless since the shirts Natsu had leftover whenever he slept over were not nearly as big enough to fit around Gajeel's muscular, bulky body, and his other shirt is still drying. But she had prepped herself to be given such a mouth watering view. Lucy had to admit, he was pretty sexy, but it wasn't like she was going to tell him that. After all, she would just be adding to his overly large ego, something she had a feeling he didn't need. "Okay, I made us some tea so help yourself, I'm going to take a shower now," Lucy said with a bright smile, which the black haired man could see was forced.

He raised an eyebrow at her antics as she walked out of the room, but said nothing, going over to the counter and grabbing a cup of her tea.

The celestial mage on the other hand, made her way over to the bathroom, grabbing a pair of clothes for her to wear once she got out. She turned the faucet, letting the steaming clear liquid poor from the metal, and undressed. She stepped into the shower, and the second she did, she felt her thoughts immediately turn to re-running the day she had just experienced. And for the second time that night, tears pricked Lucy's eyes, and as much as the blonde beauty tried to suppress it, they exploded from her eyes. Her body hunched over, and soon, she was sobbing and crying. She then started to calm down a bit when Lucy decided to focus her thoughts on the people who had actually been there for her. Her thoughts soon turned to Gajeel, and for a random reason, she started to blush lightly thinking of him. Some of the things he's done for her were completely out of character for him, but it wasn't like she got to see the soft side of him anyways.

She soon felt the water turn cold and decided she should get out, putting the thoughts that plagued her mind far behind. She grabbed a towel and quickly dried herself, putting on her shorts and tank top.

**Gajeel POV**

I could hear the water of the shower turning off, and soon later Bunny came out with her damp blonde hair hanging on her shoulders, wearing what suddenly felt like a skimpy pair of shorts and a tank top. I looked down at the mug of tea I held in my hand, trying to keep my eyes off of her because I knew that my dragon instincts and I wouldn't be able to stop from claiming her now that I knew I was falling for her and especially with the small amount of clothing she wore. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye, taking in the curve of her hips, the bust on her chest that was barely contained in her tank top, her long, creamy legs… _Okay, stop Gajeel, you're starting to sound just like that pervy lion of her's,_ I scolded myself, now focusing my thoughts on my tea.

"You like the tea," her soft voice asked. I looked up to see her smiling down at me, using a towel in her hand to dry off her hair.

"It's okay," I lied with a huff.

"Hmm," Lucy hummed to herself, sitting right next to me on the couch, grabbing her own mug as she took a sip. After a couple minutes of peaceful silence I heard her sigh and get up, setting her mug down. "I'm tired, I'll be going to bed, you can have the couch," she finished, before leaving me alone to my own thoughts.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Extremely short chapter I'm sorry about that! I hit really bad writers block so suddenly and wasn't sure what I wanted to right, but don't worry, I'll make the next chapter long so that I can make up for it._

_To All-american rejects: I'm sorry, I just like doing it:3_

_To mariawalker112: Yeah, might take a while, but hey you know, maybe Gajeel might confess early… maybe_

_To AiMila: I can't give any spoilers, but I'm sure you'd be both mad at me, yet happy at me_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase: Eh, sorry it's short… I was having troubles, but I hope you like!_


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Starting Anew**

**3****rd**** POV**

In the morning, Lucy was the first to get up, and she immediately sighed. She scratched at her face, finding it itchy from her tears drying on it. For about the millionth time, the blonde beauty thought back to her so-called friends back in Fairy Tail. She kept going over in her head what she had done wrong, but nothing ever stood out to her. She tried to always be nice, she tried her hardest to make friends with each and every one of them, but then, Lucy remembered that once she did, her true colors stood out… maybe that was way they did what they had done. Maybe they just didn't like the real Lucy? _No, stop it Lucy, don't do this to yourself, _her conscious scolded, and Lucy had to agree. She shouldn't be doing this to herself, Lucy liked herself just the way she was, no matter what anybody said. And if Fairy Tail didn't like it, it was their loss, but even when she repeated those words on her head, she still could feel her heart cracking. They were her family after her own broke apart after her mother died, in a way, they were her saviors, and not like they were always protecting her and saving her from people/things (which they do), but more like, they had saved her soul. They had comforted, treated her kindly and friendly and she had thought they had believed in her. But now, she wasn't so sure, but there was one thing she knew for sure, and that was that she couldn't keep doing this to herself.

And right at that moment, the celestial mage decided on something: she was going to quit Fairy Tail. Now, most people would say this is running away from your problems, but actually, it's not. It's becoming anew, it's starting over, and it's taking all the bad things in her life and throwing it away. After all, if you're an alcoholic who's trying to stop, would you really stay near bars and place yourself near alcohol? Lucy knew she had to do this, and even when she thought of her so-called family doing this to her, she still found that quitting was going to be hard, but something she must do. Besides, with the way things are going, the blonde knew for sure she was going to start being a burden to Gajeel, and recently, she wasn't so sure of his feelings or the way he was going to react to certain things, so she didn't know if he was going to leave her the second she was going to be troublesome for him.

After a few minutes, the celestial mage pulled herself out of bed, and slowly staggered her way to the bathroom. But right before she could get in, a flash of golden light and dust appeared, and right before her, was her trusty spirit friend Loke. "Princess," he said in a broken-hearted voice, right before he pulled her into his arms. Loke knew that Lucy wasn't a fan of his hugs, and his wanting of her kisses, or of any of the moves he would attempt to make, but at that moment, he knew she needed a hug. He knew of what Team Natsu had said to her, and so, he held back on his usual antics, wanting to comfort that girl he cared very deeply for. Lucy instantly hugged back, wrapping her arms around his neck and after a couple of seconds; she pulled away, forcing the lion spirit to release her, much to dismay. After all, even though he had done this to comfort her, he did still like her in a way she wouldn't be able to comprehend, but he let her go.

"I know what Team Natsu had done to you, I'm sorry I didn't come earlier, Virgo forced me to stay in the celestial world, saying you needed your space. But I want you to know, that yo are not weak my princess, and I am always going to be here for you," Loke said, completely serious.

Lucy sighed, running a hand through her blonde, tangled tresses. "It doesn't matter. I know that I can be a burden… most of the time. But I like myself Loke, I'm not going to change for them. I decided Loke… that I am going to quit the guild. It's not good for me anymore, and besides… I don't think I can stand to be there any longer," Lucy explained, trying to hold back tears. The blonde doesn't remember ever crying this much, not even when she was stuck with her father when he was being terrible to her.

"I understand princess, does that you're going to move as well?" Loke asked.

"Yeah, I think so. But, I'm probably just only going to be taking my clothes, a few other things, my letters, and my money."

Loke nodded, and smirked, deciding he couldn't hold back his usual antics anymore, stole a kiss from Lucy's cheek, and flashed back to the spirit world right before Lucy could say anything about it. She just stood there for a minute, grumbling about how she was going to Lucy Kick him all the way to Tenrou Island if he ever does that again.

She then quickly changed into new clothes, and walks out to the living room. Once she heard someone breathing, the mage instantly stopped. She had forgotten that Gajeel was still over; she peaked over at the dragon slayer, finding him completely crashed out on her couch. The blonde wasn't sure if he was a heavy sleeper, or not, and decided to be quiet as possible when leaving. Lucy quietly opened Virgo's gate, which brought the familiar pink haired spirit right in front of her.

"Punishment, Hime-sama," she said, in her usual voice. Lucy instantly tried to shush her to be quieter, pointing over at the sleeping form of Gajeel. Virgo nodded in understanding, "do you want me to pack up your things? Brother said you might call on me help you pack?" she asked in a whispered tone.

"Yes, could you please do that? Thank you Virgo." Lucy said with a smile. She decided it might be quicker if Virgo packed while Lucy went to the guild. At this time in the morning, the blonde knew nobody would be there, except master and possibly Mira, which Lucy hoped it wasn't the case. She knew the certain white haired female wouldn't be too happy about quitting the guild, but at least of Mira was there it would give Lucy a chance to say goodbye to her.

In what felt like too quick, Lucy stood in front of Fairy Tail, her heart beating rapidly against her chest. One reason it was doing that was because she was nervous, the other being that she was remembering all the great times she had in her. She remembered the first day she stepped into Fairy Tail, and how they were having their usual brawls. She remembered it was quite loud, and at the moment, she became a bit timid. She remember seeing Elfman yell about being a man, she remembered Gray with only his boxers on, she remembered a lot of things. Then, her mind skipped to when she first met Erza, and was confused as to why people were so scared of her, but quickly found out when the woman started the scare the senses out of her. She remembered the creation of Team Natsu, when they had to fight Deliora and Lucy learned about Gray's past, she remembered when they fought Laxus in order to save their guild, she remembered when they banded together to save her from her father and to fight against Phantom Lord, and then, she remembered when they got sent to Edolas, and when all of this started right there.

But that was all they were now; just memories fluttering in the wind like crusted over rose petals. Now, it was time to move one.

Lucy took in a deep breath, and pushed the door open, walking into the eerie silent guild. She couldn't see a certain barmaid anywhere and sighed to herself, making her way up the stairs to the second floor. Once she made it to Master Makarov's office, she hesitated. She thought of not wanting to burden Gajeel and her confidence soared. The blonde knocked on the wooden door, hearing a faint "c'mon in," come through. Lucy opened the door, opening the view to Makarov's office, and Makarov himself.

"Master," Lucy said, not sure how to approach it.

"Yes, what is it Lucy? Why are you here so early," the older small man asked, with confusion crossing his features. Recently, Makarov hasn't been down near the guild much, so he wasn't quite sure what was going on. And sadly, he hasn't even gotten to party much since he stuck with all this paperwork. Makarov finally decided to have Laxus help him work on this together, of course when he get's back from his month long mission, which should be done by today.

"I'm here to tell you that… I'm quitting Fairy Tail," Lucy stated, bringing his attention back to the blonde, the last part more said boldly than the first to show her determination. The world came crashing down after that.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Yep, another cliffhanger, sorry! Oh, and if you didn't notice, I rewritten the summary to this story because it wasn't exactly fitting the storyline. _

_To Lunascorpio20: Not quite yet, more later on haha, but you'll just have to read to continue, once you do you wouldn't want Levy to get beaten up._

_To 7strawberry7: That's actually a pretty awesome idea, but not exactly what's going to happen… you'll see after quite a lot of chapters have passed. _

_To SuperPsychoNutcase: Right?! I had troubles starting off this chapter. Anyways, I hoped you liked his chapter, and I love your name by the way!:3_

_To Dark Silver Tears: Thank you so much! And right? I don't want him to open too much because that'll be way too early, but still…:3_

_To AiMila: Thank you! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and the cliffie_


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Forecast Calls for Some Fishiness **

**3****rd**** POV**

"WHAT!" screamed Master Makarov, his eyes unusually large, and his jaw dropped. To say he wasn't expecting what Lucy was going to tell him was quite the understatement. Lucy, however, winced slightly at him tone, and volume of voice, and she also winced because she had a feeling she was going to get a reaction like that out of him.

"It's like I said Master, I am quitting the guild," the blonde beauty repeated, not liking the fact that she had to repeat it.

"… why child," the older mage asked, his eyes filled with pain and sadness. He always felt pain emotionally, and sometimes on rare occasions physically too, whenever his brats got hurt, died, or quit the guild. But he knew that not many have actually quit the guild, more like, retired from doing any kind of magic. But here he saw a beautiful girl, who had so much potential, who gave everyone in the guild happiness and kindness, who he has been with through thick and thin, quitting the guild.

"B-because… well, Team Natsu kicked me out of team, and replaced me with Lisanna, and then most of the guild has been ignoring me, except for a select few. And even though it hurts so much to leave the people I believed is family, a few I still believe are, I know this isn't good for me. It's hurting me and causing me to think badly of myself, and so I need to move forward, which brings me to quitting the guild. That way I can start anew, I can moved forward and no longer be near things that have been causing me pain," Lucy explained, dropping her eyes so that she couldn't see the sadness in the eyes of the man who she felt was like a father to her; no, a grandfather.

"I… I understand child," his voice answered, causing the celestial mage to jerk her head upwards. She stared at the smaller man with wide eyes, but then smiled softly at him. "As much as I am going to miss you, I never want any of my children in pain. And if what's been going on in the guild that's causing you pain, then I want you to do what you think will stop the pain. But Lucy, you must remember: you must never reveal sensitive information about Fairy Tail to others for as long as you live, you must never use former contacts met through your being in the guild for personal gain, and though our paths may have diverged, you must continue to live out your life with all your might, you must never consider your own life to be something insignificant, and you must never forget about your friends for as long as you live." By the end of his speech, more salty droplets poured from his glassy eyes. And although Lucy kept her head down, tears fell from her eyes as well.

"Yes, Mas- Makarov," she said. "See you later," she then chocked, knowing she couldn't force herself to say goodbye, and with that, she left his office. She knew she was defiantly going to miss him, but it was time to move on. She walked down the stairs slowly, and then her pace sped up from her chaotic emotions.

The blonde girl looked around the guild once more trying to find a certain Satan Soul barmaid, but she still couldn't see her white haired friend. Lucy smiled faintly, remembering her times with Mira, and left the guild altogether, not entirely sure if she was ever going to step foot in this building again.

After walked a couple blocks away from the building that gave her happiness, then pain, she decided to call out Virgo to see if she was done packing her necessities. "Open, gate of virgin maid, Virgo!" she called, swiping the golden key out.

"Punishment Hime-sama," she asked, cocking her head to the side with the most innocent expression on her face; just like always.

"No punishment Virgo," Lucy answered, smiling slightly at her pink haired spirit's usual antics. "I just wanted to know if you got my things packed."

"Yes I did, they are being kept in the celestial world. Would you like them now princess?" she asked.

"No, thank you Virgo; that'll be all," Lucy said, but was stopped by her unusual friend.

"Brother and I are worried about you princess." She stated, her eyebrows slightly furrowed which showed just how much concern she felt for the celestial mage.

The blonde beauty smiled at Virgo, and placed a hand on her shoulder, smiling as brightly as she could muster, which wasn't nearly as bright considering she still fetl sadness lingering in her form. But in the end, she pushed it away so she could comfort her friend, and show Virgo she was just fine. "Thank you for worrying Virgo, but I'm fine, really."

The pink haired spirit gave her a unbelieving look before disappearing back to her own world, which let Lucy drop the fake smile off her face. She didn't want her spirit friends to be worried about her, she didn't want to be burden to them too, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt when she lied to them, saying that she was alright.

The blonde took in a deep breath of air, and let it go out slowly, composing herself. She then plastered on a fake smile on her cream colored face, and walked the train station, trying to ignore the unsettling feeling in her stomach, and her heart screaming in at her brain to not leave Gajeel; at least without saying goodbye to the hard-headed iron dragon slayer.

**Makarov POV**

It had only been mere minutes since Lucy left my office, parting ways with Fairy Tail. And at this time, I finally stopped crying. I always hated it when things like this happened to my brats. Now, the girl that is the "Light of Fairy Tail" is gone, and for reasons I don't even know.

I though back to our conversation, and how Lucy told me about Team Natsu kicking her off of the team, and how the guild has started to ignore her. Something was defiantly wrong with this picture. First off, everyone in Team Natsu would sacrifice anything for their blonde haired celestial mage; they loved her; that was obvious. And then there was the guild. It was hard for me to remember a time before Lucy joined the guild. She has made such an impact, and has cared and treated each and every member with respect. I knew it would be extremely hard for them to start ignoring her, after all the positive impact she has made on our guild.

I then remembered her talking about Lisanna replacing her spot on the team. Even though I was well aware that Team Natsu had made a promise about this team happening when they were younger brats, I knew there was no way they would do that. And even if they did have Lisanna join the team, they would still never kick off Lucy; she was the glue that held them together, she was reason as to why they work so well together. And I was sure if it wasn't for her, the brats would be causing way more damage than they do already; something I am thankful of Lucy for. I could barely stand the piles of bills and complaints as it was.

Now, there was something defiantly wrong with this picture. Unless his brats have been cold, heartless, and no longer who they were, they was something that was defiantly up, and I was going to be to the bottom of it. After all, no one hurts my brats and gets away with it. No one.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: I know, it's a short chapter. Sorry! Thank you for reviewing/following/favorite! Reminder: I don't own Fairy Tail, and if I did, I'm sure you can all guess the canon pairing would be GaLu!_

_To AiMila: Yeah I agree, if I was in Lucy's shoes I would've left the guild too. I mean, what's the point in staying at a place that causes you suffering? _

_To SuperPsychoNutcase: Well, it's an awesome name. I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

_To Avita Life: Yeah she is, but Gajeel is just too clueless about love to notice, and well, Lucy is modest when it comes to these things._


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: True Emotions Exposed**

**3****rd**** POV**

Gajeel groaned and mumbled some nonsense as he awoke, turning to his side as he rested comfortably on the couch. The black haired finally opened his eyes, revealing his ruby red orbs. He groaned as if to yawn, and sat up, noting how his back slightly hurt because of the small couch with his large body. "Fuck Bunny," he growled under his breath, using his hands to rub his neck and thinking about how she was one that gave him this tiny, poor excuse of a couch (in his opinion) to sleep on. But even past that, he felt a lingering feeling of concern for Bunnygirl. He hoped she slept fine, but he knew the truth. He didn't sleep till really late that night, finding that his dragon wouldn't let him sleep until her heard her finally fall asleep, which Gajeel was going to do anyways. Not everybody was on Gajeel's good side, but the fact was this: he fell hard for Bunny, and he wanted to be with than more than a friend. So even after she fell asleep, he still had troubles sleeping, hence the reason why he had woken up so late.

The dragon slayer got up completely, moving to the kitchen which he expected to see Lucy, but when he didn't his blood ran cold; Bunnygirl wasn't here. He rushed to her bedroom, slamming open her fragile door in hopes his dragon senses were for once, wrong. But like always, they were right. Lucy wasn't here, and her clothes, personal items, and necessities were gone as well. "Bunny!" Gajeel yelled loudly, anger sparkling in his deadly red eyes. "You better not be fucking with me," he continued. But he knew she wasn't even here to do so. The black haired man quickly cursed under his breath, and put on a shirt, which he forgot he had taken off, and left her pretty apartment in rush.

_Bunny's gone. Bunny's gone. Bunny's gone. _He kept repeating the words over and over again in his mind, and for once, he and his dragon were on the same level of anger. Usually his dragon had more heightened emotions then he did, making his dragon always angrier or anything else more than him. Gajeel was mad that Bunny had left him, and he was also mad for not comforting her better last night. Sure the iron dragon slayer though that trying to comfort people was stupid and a waste a time, but for a certain reason, he didn't think it was stupid or useless to comfort his Bunnygirl, and he actually wouldn't mind if she comforted him; if a time like that ever came. _Wait, what the hell am I thinking? I need to find her now, think about this crap later, _he berated himself.

In an instant, a certain scent filled his nostrils; pure, ripe strawberries. That is Bunny's scent. There was two ways her scent went one of which headed towards the guild, and the other went to a different side of the town; the train station. The trail heading to the train station was much stronger than the other one, and so, he ran straight that way, not giving a care to the looks he received from the other people, who had stopped to stare at the scary, pierced man with bed-head and disheveled clothes.

His legs and arms pumped faster at the thought of not being able to make in time. When he caught sight of the train station, with the train still in place, he swore he almost sighed in relief. Problem was, was the crowd of people in the front. Not caring at all, he shoved and pushed past any person, not able to deter her precious scent from the piling scent of the hundreds of people who have made their way through this place; some even days old. His heart almost froze a couple times when he caught the sight of a female with blonde hair, but it was never her for they didn't have the right hairstyle of her usual half up side pony, and they weren't wearing the usual overly revealing clothing, which both gave Gajeel a great view of her as well as him having to protect her from other lecherous men.

"Get away pervert," a familiar voice commanded, a slight threat in her words. At that sound, Gajeel stopped completely, and tilted his head to where the voice came from. Right there, was a man, trying to sweet talk a familiar blonde; His Lucy.

At that moment, Gajeel was seeing red, and when up to the persistent man, punching him right in the face. "When the girl says leave, you do that. Got it?" he snarled, his dragon trying to push its way in to attack the man and beat him to a bloody pulp. The man faced with the dangerous iron dragon slayer, who also knew him from hearing stories about the jobs he went on, shook in fear, and apologized greatly to both him and Lucy. Gajeel finally released him, and not before he violently shoved the man, then headed straight to Bunny, his anger now switched to her for up and leaving him.

He grabbed her shoulders tightly but not in a painful way, and glared down at the celestial mage, who genuinely looked shocked that he was here and what he had just done to that other man. "The fuck Bunnygirl!" he said, his lips curling a little bit in a snarl. "You think you can just leave and not say anything, or just leave me in the dust-" he wanted to continue, but then he saw the sadness in her chocolate orbs, and his rant was abruptly stopped. _Damn, how does she not know I can't stand that look, _his mind asked, trying hard to keep lecturing her, but finding he was unable to do it.

"I'm sorry Gajeel, but I did what I thought was right. I needed to get away from there Gajeel; I need to start anew. The only way I thought I could do this was to quit the guild and leave Magnolia. I wasn't sure how you feel; I thought you would stop me, so I decided not to tell you," Lucy explained, trying to confident with her decision, but you could tell from the gleam in her soft orbs that she was starting to regret her decision. The look she got from Gajeel while he yelled at her, from some reason, didn't settle right in the pit of her stomach, and she could feel guilt creep its way into her system.

"And you think I don't want what's best for you? Damn Bunny, you don't get it do you? You're the only person in that stupid guild that I consider to be my friend other than Lily. If this is what helps you, you should've told me that," he scolded, softening his hold on her shoulders. Lucy looked shocked for a split second before she smiled a genuine smiled, and placed a hand on top of Gajeel's.

"Thank you Gajeel," she said with a soft look in her eyes. She was genuinely touched by his words, and the fact that she had just told her that in public, much less, at all. The iron dragon slayer looked away, trying to hide the light blush on his cheeks and his ears, inwardly chastising himself for blushing like some school girl.

"Yeah, whatever," he said gruffly, taking his hands away from hers, running a hand over his face as if to wipe away his lingeringly blush. "Well then, c'mon," he said, and before Lucy got a chance to react, he swooped in and picked her up, placing her in his broad shoulder.

The blonde squealed in surprise. "Gajeel! Let me go," she screeched, squirming underneath his hold as the black haired man headed out of the train station. "I thought you accepted my de-ecision," she asked, suddenly surprised when he jumped her on his shoulder to try to get a better hold on the beauty on this shoulder.

Gajeel rolled his eyes slightly. "I do, but you ain't leaving without me, and I can't leave without Lily knowing, so we're going back to my place," he answered roughly.

"Do I get a say in this," Lucy now asked in normal volume, her voice filled with annoyance. She cupped her chin in her hand, resting her elbow on his back; she was defiantly not pleased with being carried around like a rag doll.

"Nope." The blonde pursed her lips and then rolled her eyes at Gajeel's behavior. But she couldn't help but smile slightly; this was regular ole Gajeel to her, but even then, she felt a strange feeling of happiness settle in her. Question was: why was she slightly happy that Gajeel just stopped her from leaving at the moment?

**To be continued...**

_A/N: I sincerely as sorry for the long wait and for not updating sooner. Reasons include: having to make a sprinkler system, doing online Driver's Ed school, and etc. I am so sorry, please forgive me with this heartfelt chappie. _

_To Watergoddess10:__ Thank you so much! And I am so happy that you love this story and like my work! Thank you. And are you sure about the fish head thing? It might be cool to breath under water:3_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase:__ Well I couldn't leave Lily behind, so it might be for another more couple chapters, but I have plans for the two before they leave. :) Mwhahahah!_

_To AiMila:__ I was honestly thinking about having her hug him, but this is Lucy after all. It would be harder for her to let go if she hugged him, and it would make the goodbye a tons harder. _


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Taking Leaps of Faith**

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy knew she was being childish, but difference was, was that she didn't care. Throughout the whole way home, Gajeel carried her like a sack, and after a few minutes, he ignored her threats, insults, and cries to let her go. The slayer wouldn't tell her this, but the whole time he had to physically force himself not to smirk in amusement, for he knew she would catch it, and then start thrashing even more. And so now, she sat on his very large couch, her arms crossed over her upper body with incidentally pushed her breasts up more, and pouted, giving Gajeel the silent treatment as well as the cold shoulder.

However, Gajeel wasn't fazed by it at all; in fact, he found it just as amusing, especially how she didn't even notice that she was giving him a better view with her arms crossed. And at the same time, he wasn't going to apologize. He wasn't the one for apologizing in the first; he'd usually ignore them or if he really forced himself let them get some sort of payback and then the two were even. And even though Lucy was different to the iron dragon slayer, there was no way he was going to apologize to her for this, because he'd be lying to her, and he didn't feel like there was anything to apologize for. She was moping, and knowing her, she'd get over it soon, and start smiling like always and at least, hopefully, it would be a sincere smile, not the bullshit fake smiles she gave around. After all, Gajeel felt like he deserve her full of sunshine and happiness smile.

He wouldn't tell anyone, mostly his pride and reputation would get in the way, but he really loved her smiles. How all of her pearly white's would show, and how sometimes her smiles were so big, her eyes would clench shut. It was those moments he had a really bad urge to slam his lips against hers and kiss her with all he's got, making her cheeks as flush as a tomato. But he managed to hold himself back, well, so far at least, he wasn't sure how much longer he'll be able to hold back, especially with his inner dragon pushing itself out to take control. Then they'd defiantly be in trouble.

"You hungry Bunny," Gajeel asked, taking a seat next to the pretty blonde. Lucy huffed in response, and childishly tilted her chin away from him, shutting away her pretty chocolate brown orbs to show the pierced man that she wasn't talking to him. "Well, you fucking forced my hand Bunnygirl."

Before Lucy had a chance to look at him in confusion, Gajeel suddenly pushed her down and got on top of her with lightning speed, and jabbed his fingers to her side. It was defiantly a sight to see, watching the Black Steel Gajeel tickle a sweet busty blonde. And the response he got from the celestial mage, was loud squeals. At first, her still stubborn mood took over, and she refused to plead for him to stop, instead, just squealing and trying to push his hands away, but that only lasted for a few seconds, which felt like hours to Lucy. "Gah-Gajeel! Sh-stop…" she gasped breathlessly, her squeals now turning to screams of laughter.

After five more minutes of the complete torture, which had turned Lucy full on red and breathless, the dragon slayer stopped, grinning with satisfaction. The blonde glared back, but only for a moment before a small, soft smile curved itself onto her face, that was until her eyes widened and her already very flushed face turned to nearly a crimson red. At first, Gajeel was confused, raising a single piercing eyebrow in questioning, until he finally realized their position; he was still on top of her, his body pushed up a little so that she didn't crush under his weight, but still, he was on top of her. He forced himself to pull back at a normal speed, and sat on the couch, pressing a fist against his mouth as he coughed, trying to rid his body of the pleasant burning sensation he was feeling after slight being pressed against her goddess like body.

"Now that you're talking to me, you better fucking tell me if you're hungry or not, because maybe next time I won't let up as fast," he threatened half heartedly, smirking at her, and once more, the old Gajeel was back. Lucy glared back at him, but it didn't last long before a smile lit up on her features. _Dammit, that fucking sugary little smile; does she know what this does to me, _his thoughts roared.

"You better not, or I'll Lucy Kick you," she threatened back light heartedly. "And no, I'm not hungry. I ate before I went to the train station." Gajeel nodded, and before he had a chance to say anything, his inner dragon's voice spoke up in his thoughts. _This is your chance, ask her out, ask her to be your girlfriend, whatever. You already realized you got feelings for her, don't be like that dimwit of a dragon slayer Flamebrain, and man up. You don't want to be a pussy like all those other guys in Fairy Tail, waiting months and years with these feelings. _His dragon berated. After that, Gajeel got so focused onto his own thoughts, that he missed what his dragon said after that. _She's your mate. _Those three little words would've shocked the iron dragon slayer to core, and then, he would've realized his feelings for her held deeper emotions. But he didn't hear it, so he didn't know.

**Gajeel POV**

My inner dragon and I are a lot alike, except his emotions are stronger than mine. We tend to rarely disagree, and he's rarely ever wrong. So when he told me I needed to man up and ask her out, instead of being like one of those Fairie pussies who like her, yet are waiting a lifetime to tell her, I knew he was right. I mean, I'm always confident, and fucking always tells it as it is, but for some reason, I'm hesitating. I'm not sure why, maybe because I don't want to screw it up with her, which is hard for me to grasp considering I've never really cared about relationships with other people, but with this blonde bunny, I don't want to risk it.

But in the end, he's right. If I don't tell her soon, I'll never tell her. And there is no way I'm going to pull a Flamebrain stunt, waiting months to just gain up the courage, or at least not doing anything Natsu would do at all. Everyone in Fairy Tail could see that the stupid so-called fire dragon slayer liked Lucy as more than a friend, you have to deaf, blind, and without a brain to not notice it. Which is probably the reason why I backed off, and instead, stuck around the girl with the kid body Levy, and also because I basically tortured Bunnygirl, beat her to a pulp, and I was too much of a scaredy-cat to face her, especially when I got the front row seat of her Lucy Kicking the Stripper or Flameidiot.

I just needed to do it.

**Lucy POV**

After I told Gajeel that I was no longer hungry, he got quiet. At first I was worried if something was wrong, but from the gleam in his eyes, I noticed that he was deep in thought, so, I let him be. Even though I played the silent treatment and the cold shoulder game on him, it still didn't mean I was grateful. When I was about to leave, I didn't imagine what it would be like if he had gotten to the station before I could leave, in fact, I didn't even put that variable into my head. And when he was there, I couldn't help but notice how my heart fluttered. At first I thought it was nervousness because I knew I was going to be in trouble, but then I realized it was happiness. I was happy he came to the train station. I was happy he pulled that annoying pervert away. I was happy when he told me he actually cared about me and considered me to be a friend. I was happy he took me away, despite how vulgar his method was.

I've been noticing that a lot recently; that I was always happy whenever I was with him. But there was something else I noticed, and that was this: he was always making me blush. Sure I blushed a lot regularly, but he made me blush in a way that made my heart skip and speed up. And sometimes I feel as if I can't breathe; what is with me? Why do I love being around him, and why is it that he makes me so happy?

_Badum, badum… what is this, _my thoughts questioned, softly pressing a palm against my heart which has sped up just by thinking about Gajeel. What is this, why I am feeling like this for a friend, and why haven't I noticed this sooner?

"Lucy," an all too serious spoke, causing me to jerk my head up to him. _He… actually said my name this time… why is my heart speeding up more? It's getting kind of painful now, _I thought to myself, watching Gajeel with a steady expression while I tried to calm my soaring heart. He's never said my name before, and the way he rolled it off his tongue is making me blush; gosh, I'm going to be a tomato soon again. And then, just like that, he spoke out the words I never thought I would hear, "will you be my girlfriend?"

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Sorry, I just had to do the cliff hanger. It was practically calling my name :3 Excuse me for any grammar or spelling errors!_

_To ImmortalMidnight: Thank you so much, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. _

_To AiMila: Yes I want to start their relationship off earlier than in the other 'Lucy gets kicked off the team' stories. And besides, this is Gajeel, he's not very patient._

_To SuperPsycoNutcase: I with you there! I love it so much that I hate Gajeey (or GaLe) with all of my very being, but I Levy. Hehe_


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: Lost For Words**

**3****rd**** POV**

Once the words were out of Gajeel's mouth, Lucy felt her heart beat pick up ten folds. Suddenly, before she could answer, confusion came across her. "Why would you want me as your girlfriend?" She asked. "I-I though you liked Levy," the blonde continued, however, at the moment, she felt like slapping herself. Even after everything that has happened between the two, Lucy still cared about her, which made her sad. Levy was suppose to be her best friend, and no matter what happened between them, the celestial mage still felt the urge to protect her. She was suppose to hate her, instead, all she felt was sadness whenever she thought of the bluenette.

In response, Gajeel huffed, which held trace amount of agitation, causing Lucy to raise a single eyebrow in confusion. "The short stack is a prick, as well as the rest of the other Fairies." He answered, his red eyes darkening for a moment with a dangerous glint. The iron dragon slayer started to notice how whenever that blue haired bookworm was mentioned, he instantly got wrathful, and his inner dragon was on the same page with him. His mind always turned to how that girl completely dropped her once best friend, and how she treated Bunny like gum underneath her shoes.

"You didn't answer my question. Why do you want me to be your girlfriend, and what about Levy?" Lucy asked, more assertive this time. The truth of the matter was that the celestial mage was afraid of the answer. She tried to sound confident, but in reality, she had been hurt so many times she was scared she was going to be hurt even more. That Gajeel was going to tell her that the only reason why he stuck by her this entire time was because he pitied her. But somewhere, deep inside of herself, Lucy knew; Gajeel would never hurt her. And if he did ever hurt her, it was unintentional.

And at that moment, Lucy realized; she had fallen for Gajeel Redfox. He had stuck by her like glue, teased her, didn't treat her like she was fragile piece of china, he was her friend when her own ignored her entire being, and in a sense of it all, he cared for her. She loved how he's kind, yet doesn't flaunt it around, how he's brutally honest and always says his mind, she likes whenever he tells the other guys to back off, and in all, she loved Gajeel. In an entire emotional rollercoaster month, her slight feelings she had for the iron dragon slayer before turned into full on love, one she wasn't sure she couldn't ever get out of.

"God damn Bunny, you're as dense as the Lizard; can't you just see?" he asked, pulling her from her inner revelation. The blonde then blushed heavily, taking in how serious, yet surprisingly soft his gaze on her was, and also thinking about how she had come to with her feelings. "I've fallen for you Bunny! You're the only girl I want to fucking be with!" he exclaimed, exasperated.

Now Lucy looked down at her lap, her eyes glazing over with unshed tears. She had to tell him how she felt back, but before she could, Gajeel grabbed a hold of her chin, tilting her head up to him. "I first started liking you when Phantom Lord was at war with Fairy Tail, but I was too much of an ass at the time. Then when I joined the Faires, for the first time in my life, I was fucking scared. I had done terrible things to you, and was scared you weren't going to forgive me. But then you did, just like that. I wanted to be close to you, and the only reason I made friends with Levy was because I could be somewhat close to you. Yeah I had gotten a bit of a shitty crush on her, but the whole time, it was always you. And when she decided to be a bitch and ditch you, I realized I never liked her in the first place," Gajeel confessed. Although he wouldn't admit it, he was starting to feel a bit embarrassed, underneath her heavy gaze, but things lit up when Lucy smiled at him, grabbing a hold of face, which Gajeel didn't object to; he admit, it felt kind of nice.

"I'm in love with you too. I started liking you before, then you were there for me, when most weren't, and it was then I fell in love with you," She stated, smiling softly at him as she continued to caress his cheeks softly. She knew Gajeel wasn't the one to say things so early (or at all) but she knew that that was the meaning he was trying to get across.

"I'll take that as yes," he stated playfully with his usual grin, going back to his usual self. Then, he pulled the busty blonde to his chest, causing Lucy's breath to hitch and Gajeel to suppress a moan. _Dear Mavis, I've never done this before, but I sure can get used to it, _their thoughts cheered almost on cue, and just like that, his lips clasped on hers, not being able to hold himself back anymore.

It started out soft, loving; both of them smiling into the kiss, but then the black haired man couldn't take it. He had waited so long to kiss her, and all this patience pushed into anxiousness, and the loving kiss turned passionate and fiery quickly. He deepened the kiss, turning his head to the side, and licking her bottom lip then nibbling it playfully, asking for entrance.

And like that, she pulled away, pressing a palm against his muscular chest. "Not yet dragon," she said teasingly, smiling widely, however, inwardly, she was enjoying the feel of his chest. Once more, Gajeel was reminded of what he liked in her, this being another thing. She wasn't some easy catch, some busty chick he could met in one day and the fuck her the same night. No, Lucy respected herself in that sense, and she wasn't going to be easy for him.

In return, the dragon slayer chuckled, pressing a chaste kiss on the exposed skin of her shoulder. "I wouldn't have it any other way," he whispered, not just talking about taking the kissing further and Lucy couldn't help, but agree.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Sorry, short chapter! And I'm sorry if this isn't well written either, I kind of have troubles with the confessing love scenes. But don't worry, it'll get better! THEY'RE FINALLY TOGETHER!_

_To rolulove4ever__: And she did! I like your username by the way!_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: I know! I hope you like this chapter!_

_To Lucy __: Here you go! And it's Gajeel; he doesn't wait lol_

_To MissNerdGirl__: Haha, I was squealing while writing it._

_To FW Wandering__: Well… You'll see after more chapters go by. But I will tell you this: something is clogging their mind. I mean this is TEAM NATSU. Would they ever intentionally hurt Lucy?_

_To Guest__: Haha it would be! Knowing Gajeel is intense itself._

_To __: Sorry I made you cry! I hoped you like this chapter… I'm not good at writing confessions like this… ehehe._

_To Bashsister23__: Thank you very much!_

_To Charboady__: Thank you very very much! Your review made me smile. And it's the reason why I wrote a GaLu. Throughout the anime GaLu was and still is my ultimate pairing, but everyone likes GaLe, so I decided to make my own story! But it is seriously rare. _


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16: Insanity Is Often Found In Love**

**Mystery POV**

She's worthy of the title of a goddess; her kindness and beauty never out matched.

The moment I realized I fell in love with a woman named Lucy Heartfillia I knew she's the one. In a way, I'm like a dragon slayer, and like dragon slayers I have a mate also; the one person I am meant to spend the rest of my life with. And that person is Lucy, and I knew it the moment I set eyes on her.

Yes, I have become somewhat obsessed with her, but it happened shortly after I saw her, and tried to get her out of my mind. She was like a plague, always there and causing my attention span to be limited and I soon realized the plague held beauty inside; being sent to the beautiful underworld.

After that I could barely stop myself. I stalked her around, watching her intently as she went inside the Fairy Tail guild, as she went on with her life. And as always, she smiled her brilliant smile, even though she had gone through such terrible horrors, she continued smiling, like nothing wrong had happened. Her optimism and refusal to ever be down is admirable, yet, I knew the truth.

She forgave everybody easily, her sweet heart showing, but it was hard for her to forget.

At first I wanted to make my presence known, to comfort her in her time of need, but then, I saw a sight that made me see red. Every night a pink haired boy climbed into her and slept with her, and sometimes it wasn't just him. A red haired woman, which he soon found out her name, was Erza, and a black haired boy, named Gray, also snuck into her house, taking care of her and making her smile genuinely.

It made me angry; we mates are generally possessive of our significant other, and those three were all over her, much to my annoyance. But there weren't the only ones. Her entire guild was all over her too, the boys drooling over her shown off form like they had the right to look! And what bothered me was that she didn't seem to care, only Lucy Kicking them when it got out of hand.

None of them could be trusted with her; they were all animalist males who needed to stay as far away from my kind golden haired goddess.

And that was when I made the plan, and it was perfect. I even had the perfect person on my team, who easily infiltrated them. The plan went off without of hitch. Sure there were a couple people not affected by it, like the white haired bar maiden, Mira for example, but they were just useless variable who I needn't to worry about.

Or so I thought…

Black haired, red eyed, pierced body and annoying eating habit: Gajeel Redfox. Just the thought of him made me want to murder him, like how he thought he could be around her, carry her on his shoulder, yell at any guy with wandering eyes like he owned her, and in all, he was a nuisance and could cause a major set back in my plan. He was attracted to her, like a nauseating bee to the sweetest honey on Earthland, and so far, the man has proved to be more trouble than it's worth. I couldn't follow her just because he was always nearby, able to smell my presence, hear it too. So then I was homebound with a simple lacrima as my way to see her, which made me angry to no end.

It didn't help Lucy stuck to him like they were attached to the hip, but in a way, I understood.

I watched every day as she came home, drinking loads of tea, and taking as many sleeping pills just to get her through the night. Her once happy melted chocolate brown orbs held misery and the verge of breaking inside as she finally was home alone. I watched as the horrors she experienced haunted her, and stuck to her like super glue. She would lay down in her bed, curling up into the fetal position and sob and whimper, not being strong enough to let tears pass. In reality she's tired; she was tired of walking around plastering a fake smile on her face like she wasn't breaking inside, she was tired of feigning cheerfulness when she felt the complete opposite, and she was ultimately tired of just trying in general! She was tired of trying to not be alone, she was tired of trying to make friends with those who no longer cared about her, she was tired of losing family every where she went, and as much as I wanted to comfort and hold her/take care of her until a real smile crossed her lips, I knew this was part of the plan, and I would just have to endure it until we can finally be together. After all, with love doesn't there come a little pain as well?

**Lucy POV**

If I was to really be honest with myself, I would exclaim that this is the first time in a while I felt so happy that I was actually humming along to an unknown tune. Everything with Fairy Tail, everything wrong in my life, was washed away easily, and all I could think about was Gajeel. I still couldn't believe it; that he and I are dating, but it was the truth. I had always thought he and Levy would end up together, but I never predicted something like this to happen. But I didn't dwell too long in the past, instead, I thought of him, and us kissing… _Get your head out of gutter girl,_ my thoughts snapped, which made me notice how I had stopped walking. I continued on forward, slapping my first down on my palm in determination.

The second I saw Gajeel's kitchen cabinets, I froze. There was nothing in them, except some were filled with plates and bowls, but that was it, no food. I had made it my sole mission to get him some food, wondering how he stayed alive this long being a dragon slayer. Gajeel had tried to convince me everything was fine with having no food (he said he always went out anyways, that the food would be gone in a matter of two days and wasn't worth it), even giving me a tempting kiss to ease me, but that didn't change my mind, and so, this evenig I am setting out to pick him up some food. Having fed Natsu on more than a couple occasions, I knew just how much to buy, especially with as big as appetite and Gajeel's.

Walking into the supermarket, I grabbed a cart and went to the food section, my eyes lit with silent determination. _I had to make sure my dragon didn't starve, _I thought jokingly, smirking mischievously to myself. _My dragon… I like the sound of that, _my thoughts mused, causing me to press a hand against my lips, suppressing a giggle. Ever since then I felt like a girly fool, wanting to giggle and blush at everything he did, which I now knew was out of love, not because he pitied me or because of our friendship. However, I knew I was coming to terms with our relationship already, and was getting better.

Moving to cart over to veggies and fruits, I started loading the cart, which I knew as much as I wanted to eat strawberry desserts every day, I needed to be healthy, and so does Gajeel, probably much to his dismay. _Mavis I already sound like his wife, _I sighed, shaking earlier creepy thoughts out the way. I just moved my way on, trying to keep my attention off of the creepy thought moment I had earlier, and waving to a couple people I knew, or at least, recognized. One of them being one of the fishermen who always warned me to be careful whenever I walked on the curb of the river, trying to balance myself.

For once in some time I felt at peace, and happy. I was sulking over painful thoughts, I wasn't locked up in my apartment, I wasn't being anything like my unusual self, and instead, I was at the store, buying food. I had someone who cared about me, and that was all that mattered; the thought of being alone still jolting fear into my heart.

Finally, I finished my trip, and bought the food, but it wasn't till after that I realized my mistake: I had bought all this food and yet I had no help with bringing it back to his apartment. "Um, excuse me but could I leave some of the food here and pick it up later," I asked the woman, grabbing two of the heavier bags, might as well get through the worst on the first trip.

"Sure thing sweetie, they'll stay right here for you," she answered kindly back, smiling my way. And in return, I smiled sincerely back, leaving the store to finish my first trip.

I headed my way home, taking the short cut which still was a long way to go; now I understood part of the reason why he claimed this "wasn't worth it." But about one block in I had a sudden dropping feeling in my stomach: like someone was following me. I tried to play myself off as paranoid, but then I started hearing footsteps. I jerked around, ready to catch the perp in the act, but all I was met with was empty space, and no sound; there was no one there.

I gingerly press a palm to my race car heart, trying to calm it down. I was being silly, why would anyone follow me. I then smiled to myself and continued to walk along, my hips swaying slightly as a song popped into my head. Everything was fine.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Another glorious chapter. I had a bit of troubles with this one but it worked out fine. Excuse my grammar errors, and thank you for following/favorite/reviewing!_

_To rolulove4ever__: yay! I feel like to only person who likes cows… Haha the confession poor Gajeel! :3_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: Right?! And every one just sees his blood colored eyes and freaks out, but he is such a softie. Especially at the time he really wanted a cat since every other dragon slayer had an exceed. He reminded me a pouting kid lol._

_To Lucy Heartfillia (Guest):__ So I really hope you read this: I agree with you, Natsu nor Team Natsu nor the Guild would ever act this way to her, it's too OOC of them, unless, there's something up… I'll leave you with that. In the anime I AM A MAJOR SHIPPER OF NALU, but I find it hard in the fanfiction because Lucy tends to act OOC in nearly all of them, she's either over confident or overly shy (which she is both in the anime) and so in FanFiction I tend to prefer other pairings. But I agree with you, in the anime NALU IS THE BOMB! But I still like GaLu slightly better lol, maybe because it's not a popular pairing._

_To mariawalker112__: Right?! Poor guy who almost never expresses himself save for creative insults. I probably redid his confession like three times, the other times he was just acting too OOC._

_To AiMila__: Thank you, I hope this chapter wasn't too creepy, I just needed to show it so no one forgets the threat amongst the happiness._

_To jfkkennedy__: Thank you! And well I'm not really stalling, but… I'll just say it might be a while before they finally start their happy life together, and that's all, I'll leave you with that. _

_To fairychime-diamond47__: AGREED, I shipped them for a sec in the anime and after that it turned into a full on obsession lol. Thank you so much, your comment made my day!:3 Oh and just wait, more lovely-doveness will be coming soon!_


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17: Those Small Golden Moments**

**3****rd**** POV**

The smell was purely heavenly, wafting throughout the entire living compartment. And like honey, it stuck to the furniture and anybody who made their way through the dwelling, making their stomachs flip with hunger. That single amazing smell belonged to one thing; the cupcakes Lucy was making.

It had been a while since she had gotten to cook someone something, and it all stopped when Team Natsu had stopped making their daily trips over to her house, eating all of her food (which she stopped minding after a while), and she remembered every morning she would cook them either pancakes or waffles. But then, they stopped, and so she only cooked for herself, stopping herself from making the mouth watering treats she used to make for team, Erza in particular who couldn't seem to every stay away from the pound of sugar.

Currently, Gajeel had left his apartment, saying he needed to get something and would be back later; though she wasn't idiotic, she knew he was going to Fairy Tail to see if Panther Lily was finally back so that they could leave, but as nice as it was that he didn't mention it around Lucy, she felt sort of angry not wanting him to think she was weak. _But he doesn't think that, _her thoughts had echoed and she no longer dwelled on it, knowing they were right. So the blonde beauty decided to use the time he was out to make cupcakes infused with iron, sort of like a filing. She had originally planned on doing this a while ago, around the time they first become friends; he had been angry, raging about how he could find any food anywhere which tasted like iron, and when he did he claimed it tasted nothing like it. So this got Lucy thinking, and she only hoped it was satisfactory.

Smiling brightly, the celestial mage focused on her task at hand, feeling slightly giddy. For a time now the celestial mage could already feel herself getting more and more better from her deep dark depression, and she was so close to being back to her happy go lucky self. In truth it was all thanks to a certain iron dragon slayer. Gajeel could tell every time she lied about not being fine, especially whenever her random depression moments popped up and she lied in order to reassure him. And every time the black haired man saw through her, and made her sit down and tell him what was bothering her. It no longer shocked Lucy to see his sweet side; she already knew he had one, just didn't really flaunt it around like most people. It was great to have someone around, someone who cared.

Grabbing the cupcakes out from the oven, she breathed in its incredible aroma, giggling happily. She couldn't wait for him to try the treats and tell her what he thought, her idea had been splendid. "Punishment Hime-sama," Virgo said, popping out of nowhere and causing the poor blonde to shriek in fear. She hadn't sensed Virgo making her appearance, her mind was filled and she hadn't been paying attention.

Sighing heavily while touching her heart, Lucy turn to the pink haired girl, smiling wryily. "No punishment Virgo," she answered, slightly out of breath.

"Punishment for scaring you Hime-sama," she then asked, cocking her head to the side innocently. It still appalled Gajeel at how such a harm-wanting spirit could be so innocent at the same time, which had always made the blonde smile; that was Virgo for you.

"No punishment Virgo, did you get what I asked you for," Lucy then asked, smiling pleasantly; she wasn't angry at Virgo, especially since she knew the pink haired spirit had done it on purpose in hopes of getting punished.

"Yes I did Hime-sama, and might I add it's a great idea. I'm sure Gajeel-san will love it too," Virgo complimented, her voice emotionless as always. The spirit handed her a contained, which held the frosting she was going to use on the cupcakes.

"Thank you Virgo, you may go now," Lucy answered, giving her her signature smile. And as her friend disappeared away in a cloud of pink dust, the blonde raised the container, grinning happily.

However, as Lucy started to ice her finished goodies, while humming an unknown tune, she didn't hear the door open and close as figure walked in, who instantly was ambushed with delicious smells that tingled his nostrils; just like that he lost control and sighed, licking his lips as he grinned, following the smell to the kitchen.

The sight which was presented to Gajeel made him all the hungrier, his inner dragon practically panting like a dog.

His ruby red eyes raked her form, taking in the back of her as well as her nice rounded bum, her large hips, her long legs, and the peak of her neck that Gajeel was tempted with kissing. She was humming this soft and sweet sounding tune, making his stomach churn in a good way; he could already feel himself turning on, and it didn't help that she was also wearing an apron, while cooking, and it became all to tempting. Pulling himself away from the gutter, just grinned, knowing that this amazing girl in front of his is all his.

Gajeel ended up just standing there for a while, taking in the view before he decided to make his appearance; grabbing Lucy from behind. He wrapped his muscular arms around her waist, squeezing her against his chest.

"Gajeel!" the celestial mage instantly squealed, grabbing onto his large forearms. In response he just simply chuckled, pressing chaste kisses against her neck, which incidentally caused involuntary shivers to run up her spine.

"Whatcha up to Bunny," he asked, a smirking crossing his lips, discreetly taking a deep inhale of her strawberry scent which was now mixed in with the cupcakes. His inner dragon started purring with content, enjoying every second of her the sense of her scent, especially since Gajeel had rubbed his own all over her, marking her as his own to any other dragon slayer.

"I'm just baking," she answered, a coy smile reaching her lips, making the pierced man suspicious. Something about her gaze told him he was going to have a surprise thrown his way. This thought caused excitement to leap into his heart. Giving her another squeeze, he let her go; moving to the side to stare at the cupcakes, wondering what she might've done to them.

"You didn't poison them did you," he asked with a chuckle, already taking in the cupcakes peculiar scent. There was something off about them; they didn't smell like the ones he commonly smelled whenever he crossed a bakery, there was something more delicious about them.

"Yes Gajeel, I poisoned my boyfriend because he was being all secretive this morning," Lucy said sarcastically, slightly rolling her eyes humorously which caused another chuckle to erupt from his chest. In all truth, he loved when she was sarcastic and witty, whenever she teased him; it was quite intriguing to him. Although he couldn't help but notice how she mentioned about this morning. She obviously knew he was stretching the truth; that didn't surprise him. He already knew the blonde next to him was very smart and perceptive; he wouldn't put it past her to see right through him.

"So Bunny, what the fuck did you inject these cupcakes with? They smell… unusual," Gajeel then asked, raising a pierced eyebrow at her in questioning. Lucy then whacked his hand with her own, seeing his reach out to try one.

"No yet; not until I'm done frosting them all," she scolded, moving the rack piled with the goodies away from the grabby slayer, smiling cheekily when she saw his sort-of pout with annoyance peaking out in his red orbs.

He huffed. "Fine." The black haired man moved to leave the kitchen until he got an idea, a smirk curving at his lips. Turning around, he spun his girl to face him and grabbed her face, kissing her hard and passionately.

Smiling into the kiss, he released her just as fast as he grabbed her, smugly grinning at her dazed and flustered expression, and with that, he left the kitchen, licking his own lips to savor the flavors of Lucy.

He just couldn't get enough of her.

**Mystery POV**

Plastering a fake smile on my face, I strutted down the street, faking the softness in my eyes. Even though the dress was rather itchy and extremely uncomfortable, the makeup heavy on my face and the shoes painfully shocking my legs I knew it was all worth it, yet I couldn't understand how women wore these things daily.

After watching her walk home that one day from the grocery store I knew I had to actually talk to her, it was killing me to keep my distance. She being so close yet so far. And I knew that in order to see her I would have to be under disguise and well do you really expect a man disguised as a woman?

Adjusting the purple wig which concealed my hair I headed towards the apartment door, trying to hide the annoyance that threatened to creep up on my face. I was still furious she was staying with that iron dragon; he's pathetic, and terrible, especially from what he did to her in the Phantom Battle. He didn't deserve; nobody did, except for me that is. But unlike him I could actually wait for her, and I was planning on having her soon, it was all a matter of time and at the right time.

Plastering the same fake cheery smile on my face, I knocked on the door, trying to act as girly as possible. In my hands I was holding a couple flyers; my excuse as to why I was here.

"Hello," a familiar voice asked, the door opening to her. Lucy Heartfillia. Her brown orbs gazed at mine for a split second before she smiled her usual smile, showing all of her pearly whites. "Hi! Can I help you," she asked kindly, making my heart leap. _She's so kind, and hotter when she actually sees me… What am I saying? Get my mind out of the gutter and focus on the plan, _I scolded myself, acting as if nothing was wrong.

"Oh well my name is Xia and I was just wondering if you would accept this flyer? It's about a new restaurant that has opened up called "Garden of Food." Are you interested," I asked.

"Sure! Thank you, I'll be sure to check it out," my blonde answered, giving me a sincere smile. "Thank you for stopping by, goodbye." And just like that the door was closed and she was gone from sight, making me clench my fists in anger. We had only talked for what like a couple seconds, a minute at the most? I couldn't handle this, my anger just keeps rising the more I stay away from her. I have to speed up my plans; she must be mine as soon as possible.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Thank you all for everything! I'm sorry for another late update! Special thanks to SuperPsychoNutcase for pointing out my OOC moment, I hate when things like that happen so I appreciate it whenever someone informs me of one!_

_To PantherLilyxKiwi__: Thank you! Yeah I was hoping he would, it would be weird if you didn't; especially with his obsession with her._

_To AiMila__: Eh, he may, or he may not, you'll just have to read to find out:3_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: Thank you once more for pointing that out, sorry for the OOC moment._

_To mariawalker112__: Well if you've read my story before the rewrite you would have kind of an idea of who it would be but I will tell you if won't be Sting, or someone like that; I actually kind of like Sting and it would be hard for me to do that, just so you know. Thank you by the way!_

_To reina-angelique__: Thank you very much! I am glad people like it especially since GaLu isn't a very well liked pairing with everyone liking GaLe… But thank you._

_To FandomFanaticFic: Thank you I hope you enjoy this chappie!_


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18: Without A Trace**

**3****rd**** POV**

This was the moment. The day. It had finally come, and for once since that faithful encounter with Natsu which had brought her to Fairy Tail, the blonde celestial mage felt like she was evolving once again. Like this day represented a turning point in her life that would affect in a positive way. A day where she would become better than her past self, and grow into someone stronger without physically adding to her muscles and strength; and this would be the day.

And as she stared at her suitcase filled with the rest of her belongings, Lucy Heartfilia couldn't help but feel some sadness, even though she had thought she had gotten over it with spending time with a certain iron dragon slayer.

Her own life, she had always wanted to be a part of the guild known as Fairy Tail. It was her solace and sanctuary through the painful days of being neglected and verbally abused by her so-called father, who she now had forgiven. It was the reason why she continued to live each and every day, in hopes that maybe a day would come where she could be a part of their family.

But now, she was leaving everything behind, all because she once again was faced with mistreatment, and harsh dosage of depression. She had tried hard to make it still work, but in the end, sometimes you're fighting for the wrong thing. Sometimes there is such a thing as being too selfless, when every once in a while you need to be selfish.

Shaking the thoughts away, she continued to pack her suitcase full, even though she knew she could call out Virgo to help her, Lucy desperately needed the distraction.

_I can't believe this, _she thought to herself, a frown curving at her pretty pink lips, her eyebrows furrowed. _This whole time I always thought I absolutely needed Fairy Tail in my life, and now look at me, running away, just like with my father… I guess some things are too good to be true. But I admit, after everything, they did teach me some valuable lessons, they did cause me to change in a good way. Without them, I'd still be the girl who relied on her spirits just to simply walk through some bad weather. _She chuckled a bit, though it held no humor whatsoever, shaking her head lightly at herself; she remembered that time with Natsu, and now that she thought about it, it made her almost ashamed of herself. At the time she had whined about the smallest things, all because she wasn't used to it from being sheltered away her whole life, but since she had gained some freedom, Lucy learned that whining did nothing, _doing_ something did.

_And I guess without them, without running away from home, I would've never met Gajeel and Lily, _Lucy continued to think, a dusting of a blush laying her cheeks. It wasn't till the other day did Pantherlily finally get home from a mission, and once he caught wind of the news regarding Lucy and Fairy Tail, well to say he was displeased was an understatement. The exceed was furious, and though he didn't know her nearly as well as Gajeel did, he still cared for blonde beauty, and knew no one deserved such treatment. And even though she still didn't want the two of them to feel hatred towards the guild, for there was still a couple people who were still good, she couldn't help but feel warmed by both Lily's and Gajeel's kindness towards her.

Suddenly, a doorbell went off, shattering Lucy away from her thoughts, causing her to frown. Both Gajeel and Lily were gone, off to gather some necessities for their trip to move somewhere else, leaving Lucy at home to tend to her own things. If it was the duo, they would've walked right it, and no one really ever came to Gajeel's door wasn't the kindest looking person out there, which meant either that girl came back or it was someone else she had never met.

Sighing, she gracefully walked over to the door, and opened it, coming face to face with a person she had never seen before. "May I help you," she asked, cocking her head to the side.

A sharp gasp escaped from her lungs, right before a blood curdling ripped from her lips, echoing through the suddenly ghostly empty streets.

**Gajeel POV**

I huffed irritably, rolling my eyes in annoyance. The second Lily had gotten home, I knew he's been itching to ask me about Bunnygirl, especially after seeing me kiss her more times than not, but never said a damn word. He of course, waited until it was just to two of us to ask about Bunny and I. And of course, that just had to be when him and I went to the store to pick some things that we would need on this trip. I absolutely didn't want to be talking about her and I's relationship right in the middle of a damn store, while all these prissy people listened in on it. It was none of their fucking business, but of course, they just needed something to gossip about. _This is why I fucking hate people, _I thought grouchily to myself.

"So, you asked her out," the exceed questioned, raising an eyebrow suspiciously, which was starting to piss me off. He knew that I had been too much of a pussy to ask her out earlier, so it was obvious he thought I was lying.

"Yes," I gritted, all but throwing the package of chips into the cart, listening as they smacked roughly against the surface. But like expected, I didn't really care.

"Look," Lily sighed, placing himself into the cart, a serious expression crossing his usual indifferent face. "I just wanted to know okay? I know you care about her, maybe even more than you let on, which was why I'm asking these questions. I was just shocked to come back and see the two of you kissing when you were too shy to even ask her out before. I just wanted to see what changed, was what happened at the guild that caused you to change, to try?"

"I… I wasn't shy," I grumbled rather weakly, my voice betraying me, attempting to glare at the little brown exceed, though he just looked at me with a bored expression back, obviously not believing in anything I had said. He and Lucy had to be the only people I knew that could with stand my glares and not be affected at all.

"So, what did change," he asked calmly again, a little bit more sternly than last time; it was clear he just wasn't to drop the subject that easily.

"I grew some balls, that's what happened. I-… Fuck Lily, let's just talk about it later when no people are around to decide to be pricks," I growled out, pointedly giving the couple near us a sharp glare, one that I knew screamed with a deathly intent, inwardly smirking as the duo instantly stiffened. Their eyes became unnaturally large, and basically they sprinted from the aisle, the scent of their terror lingering in the air. Apparently they didn't expect me to be aware of the fact that they had been listening in on our conversation, gushing over it like a couple of naïve school girls. It was annoying listening to the "awh, how sweet," "he's such a charmer," and "I wish you would be more romantic like that." It made me clench my jaw, being treated like a pussy, but truthfully, I only didn't mind it when I was around Bunny. Damn, she turning me soft fast, though I would be lying if I said I was angry about it.

Walking through the checkout line, not even bothering to look at the cashier, I slammed down my money and left with the bags draped in my hand, Lily following closely behind as we fell into a peaceful silence, my thoughts going over to a certain busty blonde beauty waiting for me at home. I didn't plan on telling Lily that a part of me, that gave me confidence to ask her to be mine, was because I didn't want her to be anyone else's. I wasn't going to pull a Natsu and stay dense about my feelings, not even realizing them till it's too late.

No matter how close I was with my exceed, I wouldn't tell anyone that. All that emotional crap just wasn't me, the only exceptions being with Bunny. And now that I think about it, pretty soon I'll be frolicking in the fields with flowers stuck in my hair, throwing petals with a bright ass smile on my face with the way it's been going.

I shuddered. _Never, _I vowed, slightly disgusted at the imagery, though I did admit, pretty soon I'll be better with feelings with how everything is with Bunny. I'm not sure why, but everything just feels so much lighter, something I haven't felt since I was just a boy, when I was with Metalicana.

Suddenly, a nonexistence force stopped me right in tracks, rooting me to the ground, and causing me to drop the bags, forgotten totally. A huge wave of horror, and darkness washed over, residing within the confines of my chest. My heart sped up rapidly, my tongue suddenly going dry, and my throat felt like someone was gripping it, like someone was trying to suffocate me. And before I could do anything else, my inner dragon roared inside my mind: _Go find Lucy, NOW!_

"Gajeel, what's going on," Lily asked, a concerned gleam in his eyes, watching me steadily.

"I don't know, but something's wrong," I managed to whisper hoarsely, and without a second thought, I was sprinting towards my apartment as my inner dragon continued to roar furiously inside my only, only increasing the fear growing with each passing second. It got to the point that I could feel my nerves prickling on my skin; I could _feel_ each and every drop of sweat rolling down my body.

And once my apartment came into view, my heart lurched, my ruby eyes glowing with anger. For the door was wide open, and there was blood dripping from the door sill. Lucy was nowhere in sight.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: I am super duper sorry for the very late update. I have been hitting a major writer's block with this so just warning you; it may be a while for updates from now on. I'm really sorry. Excuse any grammar errors!_

_To Watergoddess10__: Sorry for such a long wait, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter._

_To mariawalker112__: I am glad you now love this pairing, I WAS SO ANGRY WHEN I FOUND THAT LEVY AND GAJEEL DO END UP TOGETHER IN THE END. Ugh, Lucy/Gajeel forever for me!_

_To AiMila__: That will not happen, I promise you that! _

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: It won't be anyone in the series, it will be an OC. So don't worry, it wont be anyone like Sting, or such. _

_To 3__: Sorry for the long wait._

_To feefee242__: Thank you very much and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter. _


	20. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19: Enclosed**

**3****rd**** POV**

A large gasp echoed out from the blonde's mouth, a slight wheeze from the pain emitting from her head, causing her hands to instantly reach up towards it in a vain attempt to help the agony. And after a couple seconds of just sitting there, clutching her head, the pounding pain finally dwindled down, a relived sigh escaped from her chapped lips, and she removed her hands from her head and glanced around.

Her relief was short lived.

Lucy's heart was suddenly seized in panic and fear, her chocolate brown eyes widening as she glanced around hurriedly; she felt close to hyperventilating.

_Where am I?! What is this place, _her thoughts cried, clenching her eyelids shut as she felt her stomach do summersaults and twists; anxiety of the situation building up higher and higher.

There was nothing around her that looked familiar at all, whatsoever. If anything, it looked like what Lucy would imagine the underworld to be.

Stone ground and walls cowered around her, and even though there was quite enough room, she felt as if there was barely, claustrophobia gripping her insides. She was, by no means, afraid of tight and enclosed spaces; that wasn't added to the list of fears; however, there was an aura about this place that suddenly gave the celestial mage a whole new list of fears. For in the front of Lucy, was a door that looked more like a door to a prison cell, with metallic bars covering the entrance, making it entirely impossible for child or even a small infant to get through. She looked like she was locked away in a dungeon, and suddenly, Lucy felt sick to her stomach, bile rising up on her throat.

It was dim, moist, and the atmosphere held a dreary with a dark underlining to it, causing the celestial mage to become more and more fearful as the seconds went by. _Calm down, _her thoughts whispered to herself, focusing on controlling her breathing, forcing her stiff-as-a-board shoulders to go lax. _I just need to calm down, freaking out is going to get me nowhere. First I need to calm down, then, I need to assess the situation and find a way out. Easy as that, alright, I shoulder probably ask either Virgo or Loke where I am. _

Reaching for the keys that were always basically glued to her hip since the moment she first received them, Lucy froze, her bottom lip trembling as she slowly jerked her head to the side with doe eyes; liquid ice was running through her veins. Nearly crying out in a whole new dosage of fear, it hit her like a mountain.

Her keys were gone and so was her only solace.

Her family since the very beginning, the people she treasured more than life itself, was gone.

_No… no, no, no! Where are they!? I rarely ever take them off! They have to be around here somewhere, _she thought panicky as her eyes darted all around the room, her heart clenching and beating rapidly with panic when all she could see was a small mattress lying on the corner of the room, but that was it. Her keys were gone.

_I'm all alone… again… what even happened, how did I even get here, _she questioned as tears started to streak down her now mucky cheeks from lying on the gritty floor. Then it all hit her; she remembered opening the door to this unknown man (whose image was now hazy in her mind), she remembered how the man instantly grabbed her by the shoulders and slammed her head against the door frame, she remembered the scream she let out from both the shock, and the sudden wave of pain that filled her. And she remembered darkness enveloping her.

"G-gajeel," the blonde beauty called out vainly, her arms wrapping around herself. "Lily." But nothing answered her, only eerie silence continued to linger in the air, causing Lucy to let out both a sigh of relief, and frown filled with worry. On one hand, the silence could mean that the mysterious man had only captured her and left Gajeel and Lily behind, on the other hand, it could very well mean that they could've well been kidnapped as well, and were either too injured to answer her or possibly dead. "No, this is Gajeel we're talking about," she whispered to herself, as her arms tightened around her body, dread filling her mind. "Gajeel wouldn't go so quietly nor so peacefully either," she commented with a light smile touching her lips, remembering her black haired, tough as nails (or at least on the exterior he was), boyfriend.

"Pity," she heard a voice echo nearby her, causing her head to jerk towards the cell door with surprise, but only for a second before she glowered, trying to keep of her resolve even though she still couldn't see anyone.

"It seems that even in times such as these ones all you think about it that flimsy dragon slayer," the male voice continued, it's velvety voice holding a tint of danger within. Lucy felt her nerves start to shake a little bit, but she forced forward her courage and tilted her head up defiantly.

"Who are you," she asked without a tint of fear lacing into them, inwardly surprising herself at the power she held. "What do you want," she continued.

"Who am I, what do I want?" the voice repeated, a light chuckle sounding out afterwards. "Who I am, well, you'll find out in due time. But what I want is simple; _**you**_," he growled. And right then, Lucy finally saw the body to the voice as the man stepped out of the shadows of the dungeon-like hallway, and into the light for her chocolate orbs to rest upon.

**Mystery POV**

I grinned lightly, clasping my hands behind my back as I drank in the sight. Even from the dirt that now clung to her once peachy skin, and the dried blood in her golden locks, as well as the torn up clothes due to having to drag back to her new home unconscious, she still looked like my blonde goddess. She was still unbelievably stunning, something that made me even more convinced that she had to be the most beautiful woman to have ever existed on Earthland.

"Hello my dear," I purred softly, coming closer to the door of the cell. I internally frowned at the sight of her locked away in the cell, though I had to remind myself that it was necessary. After all, it was clear she would be fearful at first, being kidnapped and taken to some unknown place with an unknown man as her company, so it was understandable of she fought or cried. But soon she would see that she was meant to be here all along, by the my side, in a place where she would be showered with love and adoration, something that those despicable people failed to do, even though Lucy deserved it all and more.

Soon, she would no longer need the cell.

"Even after all you went through you still look absolutely ravishing," I continued, voicing my thoughts from earlier. "But I must apologize for the abrupt actions I had to do in order for us to be together, I did not mean to harm you in any way my dear Lucy."

"Who are you," she asked once more, and I watched as she gingerly seemed to be scooting herself farther from me, and into the corner of her cell. Her expression remained guarded, like a cornered, wild animal, and her back stiffened as if she was expecting her to suddenly attack her like some savage.

"You do not have to fear me my dear," I said softly, assuring her, as I gave her a small smile. I then opened the cell door, a loud creak echoing from the rather empty space. "I would never intentionally harm, like I stated earlier." Walking into the cell, I stared calculating as Lucy tilted her chin upwards, attempting to appear brave even though I could see the gleam of terror making its way into her soft brown eyes.

"I don't believe you," Lucy continued before I had a chance, her eyes hardening as she forced her legs to stand, her hands clenching by her sides. "Tell me, where is Gajeel and Lily, what have you done to them," she asked boldly, but we both knew her voice was starting to crack in worry, causing me to clench my fists angrily, grinding by jaw shut.

_Gajeel, that putrid dragon! Has he really sunk his claws that much into my dear, sweet Lucy, _I thought as my fury started to bubble up, my eyes snapping towards her. "They are completely fine; I didn't touch a hair on their heads. Like I said would never hurt you my sweet," I gritted out, attempting to hold back my anger some.

"You might as well start to forget about them, they were only just holding you back; nothing more than nauseating bugs, unworthy of you. But I see that it might take some time, I'll come see you again shortly my love, in the mean time, try to get some sleep hmm," I said finally as I left to go fume out my anger, and with that, I shut the cell door close and locked it once again, ignoring my goddesses screams that echoed behind me.

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Yeah I know, its been like four months since I've updated so sorry for that. I'm currently on a two week spring break so hopefully more chapters coming your way! Thank you everyone for the reviews by the way, I got a ton for this chapter and they were all much appreciated. Thank for the follows/favs!_

_To Amanda (guest):__ I'm sorry I'm sure it is like ages since I do update for I apologize for that, hopefully you guys will get more chapters coming your way!_

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: Not yet, cant make it that easy :3_

_To AiMila__: You'll find out who he is soon, but for now, you'll be stuck with a faceless, nameless character MWUAHAHA!_

_To mariawalker112__: Don't worry happy ending for this story__, but I totally agree with you I don't like when authors don't stick with their pairing:/_

_To Shadowing__: thank you very much!_

_To FallensPain1122 (guest)__: Yeah I'm sorry about those grammar parts, I sometimes don't fully proofread before I publish so sorry for that. _

_To Lucy N. Dragneel__: Sorry for such a long wait, please enjoy the chapter!_

_To Watergoddess10__: Really sorry for the long wait!_

_To Dragon Fairy Princess__: Ahaha sorry I know it's been months now. _

_To fairychime-diamond47__: You'll find out in due time if Juvia, or Mira will help Gajeel, or even both help. _

_To Taayloorr__: Glad someone enjoyed that comment lol_

_To aquarium259:__ super sorry for such a long wait, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!:3_

_To OmegaSigh__: Thank you for the multiple reviews, Natsu won't find out per say, you'll just have to read to find out because let's just say this: not everything is as it seems to be. _


	21. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20: The Power of the Mind**

**3****rd**** POV**

Lucy now laid on the dirty, hard stone ground, her throat sore and burning from screaming after that man for so long; she had screamed for so long and so hard that it had gotten to the point where she had ultimately lost her voice. And now all the blonde beauty felt like doing was curling up and crying, especially when their encounter continued to replay inside her mind over and over again like a broken record. Her body shuddering as one too many emotions swarmed inside her head.

When he had stepped into the light he had, at first, appeared to be just some handsome man, one that looked normal enough that if Lucy had passed him on the street she would've just waved and smiled. His hair was brown, with the ends dyed a crimson red and golden eyes that matched the ends of his hair. However, the seconds words slipped through his pearly white's she knew something was wrong.

His voice and words were smooth, but slippery and vile at the same time. He reminded her much like a snake with the cunning and conceiving aura that surrounded his being. The way he said things could easily charm any person, women and men alike, and the purrs and coos could've fooled any children. But the celestial mage could see it, could hear it; the dark intent lacing his words, and shadows that had overcome his eyes. Whoever he was, he was no nice man, nor was he one that you wanted to be with.

And what made Lucy shudder even more with disgust, her stomach churning with every reminder, was how obvious it was that he wanted her. _He _wanted _her. _Oh how she wanted to scream and cry all at the same time once more. She could see from the way his eyes had narrowed onto her body and the possessive tone in his voice that he was beyond obsessed with her, something that made Lucy give off another shudder. She had just gotten happier recently, now that she was far away from the cruelty she had faced when she was at Fairy Tail, and now that she had gotten together with Gajeel who had been her rock throughout the tough time she had faced.

Now, all of it was ripped away by this unknown and crazed man. He took her away from her boyfriend/best friend, and took her away from her spirits who had always been by her side, who were the family she never had. He took her away from her friends that had been by her side when everyone else had turned against her.

Feeling herself start to choke up as their faces appeared inside her mind, the celestial mage crawled over to the corner of the cell, too numb to feel the pain emitting from her knees as they scraped against the rocky ground. She curled into herself as she pressed herself against the corner as much as possible, her fingers shaking as they wrapped around her bent knees, and it was only then that she felt tears slip from her eyes. Finally letting go, the blonde haired beauty broke out into a full melt down; big, fat tears rolled down her dirt covered cheeks and her shoulders wracked painfully as sobs erupted from her chest. Curling even farther into herself, she continued to weep, allowing herself to wallow in her misery just for a while until she would force herself to face the reality of the situation.

**3****rd**** POV**

All Gajeel saw was red, and the mantra echoing inside his head was saying: _I have to find Lucy_. The iron dragon slayer could faintly hear Lily trying to calm him down as he flipped over the stands, chairs, and everything and anything he could get my hands on, but Gajeel simply ignored him, his inner dragon roaring with him as they let out their fury together. His mind became numb, and at that time, he wasn't even completely aware what was going on as he let his wrath unleash. _No, she has to be here somewhere,_ Gajeel internally growled along with hie inner dragon as the dragon slayer ripped open the closet door, ignoring the fact that he had actually torn it from its hinges.

"GAJEEL!" Lily yelled, trying to get his attention. But once again Gajeel ignored him, desperately making his way to the bathroom. He slammed it open, but like in all the other places he checked, it was empty with no sign of a certain blonde haired celestial wizard.

"_Someone took my fucking bunny_!" He roared out loud, the items in the apartment shaking from the booming volume of his voice, pounding his fists against the wall along with it. He moved to slam his bloodied fists against the wall again, but before it could make its mark another hand stopped it, finally capturing the fury filled and wrathful dragon slayer's attention.

"Gajeel," Lily uttered again, now currently in his warrior form, his clawed paw gripping the slayers clenched fist. He stared seriously and with hard eyes into Gajeel's own red and crazed orbs, knowing that in the state the slayer was in could be extremely dangerous for anybody nearby.

"You need to calm down," the exceed continued, ignoring the way the pierced man simply narrowed his eyes furiously, and clenched his jaw together.

"Someone. Took. My. Fucking. Bunny." Gajeel growled again, though this time, Lily could hear the anger slowly leaking out of the black haired man's voice, and could see his eyes starting to turn more desperate and saddened. Lily then softened his grip lightly, but still kept a firm hold in case Gajeel erupted into another fit of rage.

"I know. Which is why you need to calm down; we won't be able to find her if you're in this state, do you understand?" Lily asked calmly, inwardly hoping that the man would just agree for he could already feel the extreme exhaustion of being in his larger form.

After a pregnant pause of Gajeel just glaring daggers at the wall, he nodded slowly. "… Yeah," the iron dragon slayer agreed, grinding his teeth together as he tried to hold both himself and his inner dragon back from going at it again when a disturbing image of his Bunnygirl wounded and covered in blood popped into his head.

"Okay," Lily whispered calmly once more, turning back to his usual state as he regarded the black haired man. "Let's find Lucy."

**To be continued…**

_A/N: Sorry kind of short, because I already have the next chapter nearly written! Just need to add some tweaks and should be up in a couple hours!:3 I just felt like this was nice place to stop._

_To SuperPsychoNutcase__: Thank you, hope you enjoy this chapter as well! I'm sorry I've been gone for so long and sorry this chapter is a but short, but I'll have next one up soon!_

_To Jazmin-Senpai__: Thank you!_

_To Kimikozumi__: I don't want to give any hints but I will say it's not Zeref.:)_

_To DeathAssassinFaerie__: Thank you, please enjoy this chapter!_

_To mariewalker112__: I'm really glad you're enjoying this story and please, enjoy this chapter! New one will come up later, most likely in a couple hours so hold tight:3_

_To Guest__: Thank you!_

_To AiMila__: Yeah and knowing Lucy she will get it together, and make up a plan. But like any normal person, she needs a second to get it together. And with Gajeel breaking the guys jaw, well, let's just say that would be Gajeel letting the guy get off easy, and we all know that's not going to happen ehehehe:3_

_To LilLinkGirl__: Ah thank you very much, and might I say I am very VERY glad that the your profile picture is ACTUALLY LINK! It drives me nuts when they mix him up with Zelda_

_To Myth Magyk Fae__: Thank you!_

_To Ashatan87__: Oh thank you, and sorry about not updating regularly; I just update whenever I can. But don't worry I have next chapter so close to being done, should be here in a few hours or so. _


	22. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21: Seeing Red**

**3****rd**** POV**

It seemed as if hours had passed, though Lucy wasn't entirely sure of time just felt longer, or if hours had actually passed by. Thankfully her tears had finally died down, drying onto her muddy cheeks. Her sobs also finally ceased, mostly due to the fact that her throat was getting sore, and her body getting exhausted. After a few deep breaths, the blonde rested her head back against the rocky wall, ignoring how pain shot up through her veins as the gash on her head touched the rough interior.

Her body slumped, ultimately tired, and wanting nothing more than to just close her eyes and let the peaceful arms of slumber take her away.

However, her mind was took consumed with fear to allow sleep any sleep, and she forced her eyes to stay open; even if they were only barely open it was better than letting herself become vulnerable around that unknown and dangerous man.

Pressing her head harder into the wall (mentally noting to avoid the gash), the blonde woman stared up at the stoned ceiling.

_Calm down, _she reminded herself, _I need to clear my head and start fresh; I can't just sit here and expect someone to save me, I can't just sit here and wallow in my misery. I'm better than that now. I'm stronger now, braver; I can do this. I can escape from here, get back my keys, and return back to Gajeel… Yes! _Lucy pounded her fist into her hand determinedly, her mind erasing the dark thoughts that had consumed her only minutes earlier.

Taking in deep breath, the blonde forced her mind to push back the true fear she felt as she stared ahead with narrowed eyes, lifting her chin as she refused to let her weakness overcome her. In earlier years the blonde celestial mage might've kept crying, and praying to whoever was listening to let her free; she even might've hoped her father would come and save despite everything he had put her through. But as the years passed, as her mind matured, and as she faced the cruel words spoken to her by none other than Fairy Tail, Lucy grew to no longer being the person she had once been.

Like she had mentioned earlier, she was stronger now, better and braver, and she was going to escape even if it was the last thing she did.

"Lucy, honey," The slimy voice from earlier echoed into her cell, causing Lucy's back to stiffen, however she show no fear as the said man stepped into the light, her chocolate colored orbs glaring up at his form.

The brown haired man stared evenly back at her, standing behind the bars of her cell. Catching sight of her glare, he simply sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know why you must be so difficult, but I understand, my love. After everything you've been through it's not hard to see why you are hesitant to open up." He cooed in what he believed to be coaxing voice, though to Lucy, it was anything but that. It caused violent shivers to run up her spine as she continued to throw daggers at him with her eyes; her expression never once faltering.

Letting out yet another sigh, the man unlocked the cell door, and stepped inside of it, locking the door behind him. Instantly, the celestial mage moved to stand up, instinctively trying to feel less small against the man, but her limbs were too tired to comply, and she ended up slumping back against the wall again. Tilting her chin up, she watched calculatingly as the man made his way to her; he then stopped a couple feet away when he caught the sight of her fist clenching.

"C'mon love," he continued, throwing his arms out. "If you would only just ease up, even if it's just a tiny bit, I can take you out of this dreadful cell. You can have your own luxurious room, a big comfortable bed to sleep on. Now that doesn't sound so bad, does it?" He grinned as he slowly prowled his way so that he was directly in front of Lucy, crouching down to look straight into her eyes.

"… Who are you," Lucy nearly growled, ignoring his earlier words. She hid back the dread that ran through her veins as she caught the possessive and obsessed gleam in his blazing golden eyes.

"Me? Hmm…" A mischievous grin then appeared onto his features, and immediately the blondes narrowed her eyes even more, generating a chuckle from the unknown man. "My name is Zayn."

"… What do you want with me, _Zayn_," She asked evenly, though despite her rising confidence against this mysterious Zayn man, she could help but feel as if acid had been poured onto her tongue once his name slipped through her teeth. A part of her didn't want to give the man satisfaction of her calling him by his name, and would rather continue to know him as "the man."

"Must I repeat myself? I thought I had made myself clear from our visit earlier," he continued in his rather smooth voice, the grin still curling around his lips.

"No, what is it that you want specifically. Earlier you just said you wanted me, but you didn't say why," Lucy continued bravely, refusing to cower under the brunette's intense gaze.

"Ah yes, I guess you're right, I wasn't being very specific was I darling? Though I believe that is a subject for another time. For you see, I've just got you, and I don't want to scare you away, my love." Zayn then reached forward and gripped her chin in a tight, but not a bruising grip, while the celestial mage stared up defiantly, twisting her chin out of his hold.

In response, the brown haired man frowned softly, disappointed shining in his eyes. "… Oh well, though you will come around eventually. I shall see you soon my dear Lucy." And with that he was exiting her cell, locking it behind himself and disappearing into the shadows.

After a few moments, and the sounds of footsteps seemed to disappear, was only then that Lucy relaxed against the wall again. Though this time, it was because she wasn't going to burst out crying again, nor was it because she felt too tired to move.

No, it was because she getting herself comfortable while she formed a plan of sorts inside her head, knowing that she would do anything to get her keys back, and to go back to Gajeel and Lily.

**3****rd**** POV, Meanwhile**

With a heart filled with rage and desire, the first place the iron dragon headed towards was none other than the guild that had broken Lucy's heart; Fairy Tail. Gajeel seemed dead set on thinking that it had been them who had kidnapped the blonde, who had taken her away from him, however, his brown haired exceed thought otherwise.

Though Pantherlily knew that Gajeel tended to not think straight when ones he cared about were in danger (for he didn't have many that he was very close to), the exceed decided it was best to keep out of the pierced man's way, allowing him to storm over to the guild with ruby colored orbs blazing with fury. And even while Lily was quite aware of the treatment given to Lucy, he knew that in this scenario they had nothing to do with the celestial mage's abduction. They had wanted her out, gone, away; so it didn't make sense for them to steal her right back.

However, Lily decided to hold his tongue instead of telling his thoughts to Gajeel. He had just gotten the man to calm down just enough to stop punching everything he could get his hands on, and he knew that if he said anything it might cause Gajeel to go back into a rampage.

Sighing wearily, he watched as they finally made it to doors of the guild, and with a booming thud, the black haired man kicked the door open with a powerful, not minding the fact that he had broken the door off from the hinges. And the second everyone saw who it was, the guild became silent, remembering earlier when Gajeel had gone off when Team Natsu had kicked Lucy out. It was obvious from his harsh treatment towards Levy, the one person everyone thought had been the closest to Gajeel, that he was overprotective of the blonde; so instead of doing anything they all kept their distance and went back to minding their own business. It was better to not poke an agitated bear as some say.

The only person who wasn't at all affected by the murderous aura that emitted from Gajeel was Mira, who instead looked concerned when she didn't catch sight of a familiar blonde. Opening her mouth to ask him where Lucy was, Gajeel quickly interrupted, his jaw clenched as the words slipped from his mouth like acid. "Where is she?!" he growled, his eyes narrowing onto the white haired barmaid.

"Gajeel," Mira stated softly, furrowing her delicate eyebrows as the concern she felt increased. "Who are you talking about?"

"WHERE THE FUCK IS LUCY?!" He then roared, causing the majority of the guild to cover their ears in agony. He slammed his fist against the counter of the bar, ignoring the paw that had been placed on his shoulder, and the worried look he was receiving from his exceed.

Now having the full attention of the guild, his anger filled eyes danced around the guild, right before they finally stopped onto none other than Team Natsu, and Levy's team Shadow Gear that sat right next to them. Without a second thought he stormed over to where they were sitting, and grabbed Natsu by the front of the vest, ignoring the insults and the annoyed calls of protest he received in return.

Bringing Natsu's face closer, he sneered into the fire dragon slayers face, his fist tightening around the front of Natsu's vest.

"_Where. The. Fuck. Is. My. Bunny._"

**To be continued…**

_A/N: I know, I know, I said it would be up in a couple of hours, but I'm so terribly sorry. I did work on it for a couple more hours, perfecting it, and then when I tried uploading it into Doc Manager, it kept saying I couldn't for some reason. Then I waited a day and tried to turn on my computer and it crashes. I didn't get it fixed until right now thanks to the Goddess of Technology, or in other words, my momma. Also I'm going to be going over all my earlier chapters and just fixing any errors that I might've missed. I reread my first chapter and found a lot of them so yeah they'll just be small things really, but will clean up the story nicely._

_To SuperPsycoNutcase__: Yeah sorry it took some time to upload this, but hopefully you'll like this chapter!:3_

_To Katelyn__: Ah thank you, I do ignore Doom Marine's reviews, and sometimes delete them but thank you. Yeah and I agree about the whole GaLu, there are those stories out there, but they're harder to find since everyone likes GaLe and NaLu. I'm not a big fan of NaLu either; it's just kind of hard for me to see them together is all. And well, Lucy's keys… you'll find out soon but they aren't with her:3_

_To Ashatan87__: Yeah I feel like Bunnygirl is more intimate than Bunny as well (Bunny is more like the nickname of a nickname lol), but I feel it's even more intimate when he actually calls her Lucy, which is why I make sure he says it rarely, being Gajeel and all. And about him finding out that she's his mate, that will happen more later on, right now he's too focused on finding her. _

_To chabeebear99__: Thank you so much, please enjoy this chapter and overprotective Gajeel!_

_To mikansakuraan__gel: Sorry, please enjoy this chappie!_

_To muntolove__: I hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you for reading. _

_To Watergoddess10__: Thank you very much, I always get really worried if he's OOC or not; nothing it more aggravating than when a character is not in character. I just wanted to give you guys the actual Gajeel. _


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